Defence Minister’s Mr. Panos Panagiotopoulos statement following his meeting with the Prime Minister

The Minister of National Defence Mr. Panos Panagiotopoulos, following his meeting with the Prime Minister, made the following statement:

PANOS PANAGIOTOPOULOS: We had one of our customary cooperation meetings with the Prime Minister. During this meeting, we examined all matters of my pertinence, namely matters of the Ministry of National Defence. Matters related to the Ministry’s of National Defence budget, matters related to expenses on armaments, matters related to the special payroll of the Ministry of National Defence, our priorities, the existing needs.

It has been a decision taken by the Prime Minister since the beginning, that this battle should be taken to the end and have a successful outcome, in order to have no further wage cuts to the country’s Armed Forces.

The Prime Minister, before everyone else, then me, as Minister of National Defence, the President of the Hellenic Republic few days ago – you saw it for yourselves – we all agree on this need, the requirement to have no further cuts to the people serving in the Hellenic Armed Forces.

Their mission is very difficult. They perform it in the best possible way. The cuts they have experienced to their wages are very heavy, just like the rest of the Hellenic people, of course. These cuts are of 37%. Therefore, we must defend their families’ dignity and make their everyday lide as less hard as possible.

All these matters have been examined and, always by the directives and guidance of the Prime Minister, are heading towards their implementation.

JOURNALIST: Are you preoccupied by the graveness of the march of events in Syria? Could they have greater magnitude in the end?

PANOS PANAGIOTOPOULOS: We follow the march of events in the broader area of the South-eastern Mediterranean and, naturally, we follow even closer and with great attention the ones in Syria.