FM on Lisbon Treaty

[Ellinas]

Foreign Minister Dora Bakoyannis on Thursday addressed Parliament's Foreign Affairs Committee which convened to discuss the bill for the ratification of the EU Lisbon Treaty.

"We have the right to underline that we will not accept any downgrading or sidestepping of the criteria which are valid for all the candidate member states. As the oldest member of the European Union in the region of the Balkans, we have particular responsibility. The possible accession of countries with anti-European policies would be against these countries themselves, the European Union, and finally Greece itself," Bakoyannis said regarding the enlargement of the EU.

"In many member-states, the fatigue increases from the continuous EU enlargements," Bakoyannis observed. In this climate, "our country steadfastly and with consistency supports the quests of the Balkan countries to accede to the European Union. The Thessaloniki agenda constitutes a point of reference for the Balkans," Bakoyannis added.

ANA