Macron, Mitsotakis visit ‘a show of solidarity in practice’

The visit of French President Emmanuel Macron and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis to Cyprus on Monday constitutes “a show of solidarity in practice”, House President Annita Demetriou said.

She wrote in a post on social media that Disy, her party, “welcomes the statements of support and the substantive actions” undertaken in support of Cyprus after the island was hit by an Iranian-made drone last week, “including the dispatch of military force” by both France and Greece in recent days.

“The presence of the two leaders is a show of European solidarity towards the Republic of Cyprus in practice,” she said, before pointing out that Cyprus is “the European Union member state which is at the forefront of developments in the eastern Mediterranean”.

She also sought to praise Cyprus President Nikos Christodoulides’ predecessor and former Disy leader Nicos Anastasiades, saying that Monday’s visit “highlights the importance of the multi-level foreign policy which Cyprus began to follow in 2013”, when Anastasiades was first elected.

That policy, she said, “has rightly continued to this day”, with Christodoulides himself a former Disy member and Anastasiades’ foreign minister between 2018 and 2022.

“In this context, Disy reiterates its firm position in favour of strengthening the Republic of Cyprus’ defensive armour against the challenges and threats of our time.” she said, before calling on the government to devise “a clear plan to address the indirect risks arising from developments in the region”.

She said that those risks include “economic impacts” and “the possibility of new migratory flows”.

“Preparedness for challenges is a matter of national responsibility and requires coordinated and timely actions. Disy is ready to contribute to this, constructively and responsibly, as it always does,” she said.