Venizelos at NATO FMs Meeting
Government Vice-President and Foreign Minister Evangelos Venizelos participated at a two-day meeting of NATO Foreign Ministers in Brussels on December 3-4.
The next NATO Summit - to be held in the UK in September 2014 - topped the agenda whereas the current NATO operations in Afghanistan and NATO partnerships were also discussed.
In his intervention, Venizelos referred to the three main priorities of NATO partnerships, substantial utilization of the Alliance’s capabilities, and the new form of NATO’s presence in Afghanistan. Moreover, Venizelos and his Georgian counterpart signed a Memorandum of Cooperation between the Greek and Georgian Foreign Ministries on the provision of assistance in bringing Georgia closer to the EU.
On FYROM’s Accession to NATO
During NATO’s working dinner on NATO’s Open Door policy, Venizelos reiterated the Greek positions with regard to the prerequisites for FYROM’s accession to NATO, pointing out that the name issue is not a bilateral matter between Greek and FYROM, but a pending international problem, in accordance with the relevant UN Security Council Resolutions. He also said that in that context Greece fully respects the process being directed by the UN Secretary General, through Mr. Nimetz, for the resolution of the name issue, which is essentially a matter of good neighbourly relations, of respect for international law, and of regional security.