“It is a great honour and a great pleasure to attend the United Nations Peacekeeping Ministerial Conference.

We have had the opportunity to discuss Greece’s participation in peacekeeping operations and how dedicated Greece is to these missions, given the fact that Greece participates since 2006 in UNIFIL (United Nations Interim Force In Lebanon) with one ship.And, of course, we maintain our candidacy to assume Command of the UNIFIL Maritime Task Force.

We brought forward the matter of UNFICYP in Cyprus, that its work and mission are extremely important and that the Force’s composition and mandate must not be altered in any way.

We also state that Greece remains focused on the missions and efforts made by the United Nations to maintain peace in all regions.We participate, within the framework of the European Union, NATO, and the United Nations, to contribute to peacekeeping and the prevention of conflict in all regions and particularly in the broader East Mediterranean and Aegean region.

Our participation in synergies, such as the Greece – Cyprus – Israel and Greece – Cyprus – Egypt trilateral cooperations, enables and contributes decisively to the maintenance of a spirit of calmness and security in the region”.