Alternate Minister of Foreign Affairs M. Varvitsiotis’ statement following his meeting with the State Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Slovakia, F. Ružička (Athens, 20 September 2019)

Alternate Minister of Foreign Affairs M. Varvitsiotis’ statement following his meeting with the State Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Slovakia, F. Ružička (Athens, 20 September 2019)The Alternate Minister of Foreign Affairs for European affairs, Miltiadis Varvitsiotis, met today with the State Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Slovakia, František Ružička.

Their discussion touched on issues of European interest, as well as prospects for enhancing cooperation between the two countries, with particular emphasis placed on the migration issue, the European perspective of the Western Balkans and Brexit.

Mr. Varvitsiotis referred to the concerning increase in migration flows recently observed at the country's borders. Mr Ružička, in turn, acknowledged the significant burden shouldered by Greece, stressing the need for a comprehensive approach to the phenomenon of migration.

During the meeting, which took place in a very friendly atmosphere, the excellent level of bilateral relations and the common wish to further deepen the cooperation between the two countries were confirmed.

During the joint statements to the news media after the meeting, the Alternate Minister of Foreign Affairs made the following statement:

“Today we had the pleasure of meeting with the Slovak Deputy Minister of Foreign and European Affairs, František Ružička, with whom we had a frank discussion on all issues facing the two countries and Europe as a whole. The European Union is on the brink of a new era, an era full of challenges, which we are facing with optimism, following the recent results of the European elections, where the majority of European citizens asked for more Europe. This is why it is important to address these issues together. Relations with countries such as the Slovak Republic are necessary in order to build the necessary alliances and establish relationships of trust, so that Europe can move forward together. We discussed Brexit, we discussed enlargement, we discussed migration, we discussed the need for further economic exchanges — and we also discussed the system of security and challenges in the Aegean in terms of Turkey and the Republic of Cyprus. One thing is certain: we will continue this constructive, meaningful and in-depth dialogue, so that we can understand each other even better. And we will make as many joint statements as we can within the context of the EU”.

Addressing the Slovak Deputy Minister of Foreign and European Affairs, Mr Varvitsiotis added:

“ My dear friend, I wanted to welcome you in Athens once more. We had a very fruitful discussion. I think that we have so far reviewed a big agenda of issues, we have found common ground in most of the issues. And we also found great room for improvement and political understanding of our relation. We represent two people that feel close to each other, that share a friendship and that also share a common vision. This is our common vision: to live in a stronger Europe. We want for our common house to become a house of security, prosperity but also a bigger house that will include more and more countries like the Western Balkan countries. In all the challenges we have ahead of us, brexit, migration security challenges in the Mediterranean, I think that after this discussion that we had, we have a deeper understanding of the position of each other. We see there is room for improvement of our political relation, and we find it important to have common positions in the European Council in all the big issues."

The Greek Alternate Minister then held a working luncheon for the Slovak Deputy Minister.