The following are excerpts from Foreign Minister Dimitris Droutsas’ interview on NET radio on 7 February 2011.
[On the talks at the European Council]
· “The final result that we want is a permanent and convincing support mechanism from the European Union for the euro. So that international markets will be convinced that they can’t play games with the euro.”
· “We are in the midst of a discussion in which various general principles are being raised; principles that we are saying should be respected throughout the European Union framework, and particularly in the eurozone. These principles are important, and we are making the reminder that in recent months Greece has moved ahead by itself on a number of vital reforms. Greece has already met the greater part of the conditions we are now discussing for the whole of the European Union, and the eurozone in particular.”
[On developments in Egypt]
· “We want to see the whole region, and Egypt in particular, move in the direction of a real democracy where the political forces and the political parties that exist in Egypt can evolve, express themselves freely, so that we can have a smooth transition to a real democracy and not see extremist or fundamentalist phenomena. That is our goal, and I firmly believe that Greece can help in this process.”
February 7, 2011