Dear Deputy Prime Minister, dear Tanja,
It is a magnificent pleasure and a great honor to be here at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Slovenia.
I would like to congratulate you personally for your excellent work, your very powerful mindset and your influential character, which are absolutely essential, both for the European Union and for the United Nations.
Greece and Slovenia, both members of the Security Council of the United Nations, and EU partners, share common values, principles and challenges.
We do have a common perspective about the world in very challenging times. The European values are a common set of principles, and we defend them very strongly. We adhere to international law, and we just verified our joint attitude towards fully implementing it.
Greece and Slovenia are both member states in many Organizations, and we share a lot of common attitudes.
We both echo the EU’s voice within the Security Council, and it is particularly important at this moment to be together. We look forward to further enhancing our coordination for Greece’s upcoming Presidency of the Security Council in May. It would be an honor to have the Foreign Minister at our Signature Event on the 20th of May in New York.
I am visiting Ljubljana immediately after Geneva, as the Foreign Minister just mentioned, for the meeting on Cyprus under the auspices of the Secretary-General.
We strongly believe in the importance of continuing the dialogue, the discussion. Yesterday, we recognized the significance of being deliberative in spite of differences. We do think that the United Nations framework is the strong foundation in order to proceed with the solution in Cyprus that would reunite the island.
Today, here in Slovenia, we agreed on the need to increase and strengthen our bilateral ties in economy, in trade, in investment, in energy. We have a lot of areas where we could improve our cooperation.
In tourism, as the Deputy Prime Minister just mentioned, we do have a very good flow of visitors. Second place is not enough, but we are going to work in order to make it at the top. Greek visitors are very happy with beautiful Ljubljana and this beautiful country.
I would like to highlight the importance of also enhancing our cooperation when it comes to the context of the Three Seas initiative. Greece became the 13th member in 2023. It is of importance that the Aegean is becoming the “fourth” Sea in the whole project that unites a lot of countries. We firmly believe that this Southern dimension is important because it serves to bridge South and North. This is important because it broadens the perspective of geopolitical interests in the region.
We also discussed, as mentioned, the “Med9” initiative. Given Slovenia's Presidency this year, we are going to closely work and participate in all events organized by Slovenia. I think it's important to have that type of regional outcome when it comes to common challenges and we're fully supportive of all initiatives stated by Slovenia.
One of the priorities is EU Foreign Policy and Enlargement. We have extensively discussed about the enlargement process and especially the Western Balkans. We do believe that the enlargement process within the European Union is also a revitalisation process for the European Union. And it is of utmost importance that we both feel strongly about the next steps concerning the Western Balkans.
It's been 22 years since the Thessaloniki agenda, which set the framework for the accession of the Western Balkans. I think we should take proper and strong action in order to accelerate the process. Obviously, under the European acquis and international law and based on the own merits principle, but we need to accelerate the process and we share this belief with the Foreign Minister.
The war in Ukraine, and the crisis in the Middle East have shaken the whole world. We had some positive news from both sides, but we also had some negative news.
Ceasefire seems not to be enough. We need to establish a mindset of peace and prosperity. The conflict in Ukraine needs to end. We support a just, comprehensive and lasting peace for Ukraine by fully respecting Ukraine's territorial integrity and sovereignty. Obviously, we need to realize that the war in Ukraine is not only a war about two countries, but it's an existential issue for the whole world.
Also, in the Middle East, we were deeply shocked by the resumption of hostilities in Gaza and the extensive number of human casualties. We appeal for the ceasefire to be respected, for the hostages to be released and for additional humanitarian aid to flow uninhibited. Within Gaza, there is a tremendous need for further humanitarian assistance, and we work together in order to make sure that this assistance reaches those in need.
Dear Tanja,
In an era marked by unpredictability in global affairs, forging relations like ours is not just important, but really makes a significant difference. Together, we can reach much better results for a better world, and this is an obligation we have to the world and to the future generations.
Thank you.
JOURNALIST: Question regarding the events in Türkiye (following the statements).
G. GERAPETRITIS: Concessions to the rule of law and civil liberties cannot be tolerated. For any alleged violation, convincing answers must be provided.
March 19, 2025