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Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides gestures as he speaks during an Associated Press interview ahead of this week’s major EU-Middle East summit, at the presidential palace in the capital Nicosia, Tuesday. [AP]<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
European Union leaders meeting in Cyprus need to start preparing a playbook on what should happen if an EU country under attack puts out a call for help from bloc partners, the president of Cyprus said.<\/p>\n
In an exclusive interview with The Associated Press on Tuesday, President Nikos Christodoulides said EU leaders will discuss \u201cgiving substance\u201d to Article 42.7 of the bloc\u2019s treaties, which oblige all 27 member states to assist each other in times of crisis.<\/p>\n
The article states that if a nation is the victim of armed aggression on its territory, its partners should provide \u201caid and assistance by all the means in their power.\u201d It has never been used before so there\u2019s no hard and fast rules on how EU members should respond to any call for assistance.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have Article 42.7 and we don\u2019t know what is going to happen if a member state triggers this article,\u201d Christodoulides said ahead of an EU-Mideast summit he is also hosting later this week, expected to focus on the Iran war and its fallout. \u201cSo we\u2019re going to have a discussion and prepare, let\u2019s say, an operational plan of what is going to happen in case a member state triggers this article, and there are a number of issues.\u201d<\/p>\n
The issue resonates particularly with Christodoulides, who appealed for help from fellow EU countries last month when a Shahed drone struck a British air base on the island\u2019s southern coastline. Cypriot officials said the drone was launched from Lebanon whose capital is just 207 kilometers (129 miles) away from Cyprus\u2019 southern coast. Greece, France, Spain, The Netherlands and Portugal dispatched ships with anti-drone capabilities to help defend the island.<\/p>\n
Clarification needed on countries that are also NATO members<\/p>\n
Christodoulides said since many EU countries are also members of NATO, the playbook should clarify how those countries would respond to a call for help from an EU partner without conflicting with their obligations under the military alliance.<\/p>\n
NATO\u2019s own security guarantee, Article 5, states an attack on one ally is deemed an attack on them all, requiring a collective response.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo what is going to happen in this situation if a member state is both NATO member state and an EU member state? What is going to happen?\u201d Christodoulides said.<\/p>\n
Another issue that needs to be addressed under the Article 47.2 is whether a response would be a collective one in the NATO mold or just one for states neighboring the country in distress. There\u2019s also the issue of what means would need to be used to deal with varying types of crises.<\/p>\n
Forging closer EU ties to the Mideast<\/h3>\n
Christodoulides said he\u2019s pleased to see that fellow EU leaders now \u201cunderstand the importance\u201d of bringing the bloc closer to the Middle East with such initiatives as the Mediterranean Pact that implements specific projects on a range of issues including health, education and energy in Middle Eastern countries.<\/p>\n
Closer EU ties to the Middle East has been a key priority for Cyprus\u2019 EU presidency, which Christodoulides said offers a \u201cvery good opportunity \u2026 to give substance\u201d to that objective. Attending the informal EU leaders\u2019 summit later this week will be the leaders of Egypt, Lebanon, Syria and Jordan, affording the opportunity \u201cnot just to exchange ideas but to see in action how we elevate our cooperation in a strategic level.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe can represent the interest of the countries of the Greater Middle East to Brussels, but at the same time, and this is very, very important, the countries in the region, they trust Cyprus to represent them in the European Union,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Bringing India to Europe<\/h3>\n
Christodoulides is a strong proponent of the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC), a trade, energy and digital connectivity corridor that would link the continent with the world\u2019s largest democracy and is hoped to usher peace and stability in the Middle East.<\/p>\n
Christodoulides said under the Cypriot EU presidency, a \u201cFriends of IMEC\u201d group has been set up to promote the initiative, which still lacks what he said are more specific projects. One such project is the Great Seas Interconnector, an electricity cable connecting the power grids of Greece and Cyprus and eventually Israel that has been plagued by delays.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe can work together with the Americans, with the US Government, with President Trump in order to give substance because it will be a win-win situation for both the European Union and the United States\u201d with additional concrete projects, Christodoulides said.<\/p>\n
On the lookout for new energy sources<\/h3>\n
The Iran war again brought the need for the EU to diversify its energy source into sharp relief. Christodoulides said he\u2019s in talks with the EU\u2019s executive arm on how Cyprus\u2019 own offshore natural gas deposits can help the bloc find alternative energy sources and routes.<\/p>\n
He said Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will unveil on Friday \u201cvery specific proposals\u201d regarding energy costs and how the bloc can become more energy independent.<\/p>\n
The Cypriot president said the EU has made significant strides in hastening its decision on making mechanisms but has failed to deliver on its pledge to add new members in the last two years, diminishing the trust that prospective member nations have in the union.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo we have a strong geopolitical tool that we are losing mainly because of our mistakes. The situation today is much better. We are deciding in a much faster, let\u2019s say, pace,\u201d said Christodoulides. \u201cAnd enlargement is one of the geopolitical tools that, as a European Union, we need pretty soon to have specific decisions.\u201d [AP]<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n