Defence Minister, Charalambos Petridis, has travelled to Brussels where the Ministers of Defence discussed the Strategic Compass document together with the EU Foreign Ministers at a joint meeting of the Foreign Affairs Council.

The meeting ended with a meeting of the Defence Ministers, during which the situation with Russia’s aggression and ways of supporting Ukraine were discussed as well as possible scenarios for the development of the conflict, according to a statement from the Ministry of Defence.

Mr. Petridis made a statement regarding his participation in the joint meeting of EU Foreign and Defence Ministers, saying the following:

“I participated today in a joint meeting with the Foreign Ministers, where we approved the Strategic Compass document which will contribute to the development of the common strategic culture and autonomy of the European Union for the next decade. 

Cyprus has supported the adoption of the document which sets out our common aspirations in Crisis Management, Capability Building and Strengthening the Resilience and Cooperation of the European Union. 

It was jointly stated that the role of the European Union in the field of Defence and Security needs to be strengthened.

We also discussed the Russian invasion of Ukraine, where we had the opportunity to learn about the latest developments. 

Once again we condemned the Russian invasion and declared our support for the unity, independence, territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine. In this context, I informed my partners about Cyprus’ shipment of the 1st humanitarian aid package of 1 million euros.”

To watch the video of the statement, click here.

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