In preparation of the European Council meeting later this week, the General Affairs Council today will be looking on a very important number of issues in line with the priorities of the Hellenic Presidency of the Council of European Union.
The first point and the first priority is the industrial competitiveness as an instrument for job creation and growth. This is the main problem for the European societies and first of all for our young generation. The second point is the assessment about the progress of the European semester. A third point is the political dialogue between EU and Africa.
And of course, we have the possibility, together with President Van Rompuy, to discuss different institutional matters like the principle of subsidiarity in the European Union.
Journalist: Any comment about yesterday’s discussion on Ukraine?
Venizelos: The European response is very clear and strong. Our basis is always the respect of the international legal order but of course also the need for stability and peace. This is our historical mission: to protect the stability and coexistence in our European continent. It is very clear that the last decision of the Council to implement some sanctions is a very clear message of our determination. On the other hand, we always keep open the different channels of political and diplomatic dialogue because we need this dialogue in order to achieve a final acceptable solution.
March 18, 2014