At the summit, Kyriakos Mitsotakis will ask for more money for migration and natural disasters

At the last European Council meeting of 2023, where the main topic was the review of the multi-annual budget framework, the 27 countries – including Kyriakos Mitsotakis – were invited to agree on a compromise that satisfied all parties.

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis comes to the table with the position that it is necessary to increase the EU budget… and raises the issue of more European funds for migration and natural disasters.

At the summit, Kyriakos Mitsotakis is expected to emphasize the “dissonance”, as member states should not be further supported to address these two major challenges and at the same time additional resources should be provided to Ukraine.

In the run-up, the Prime Minister has sought allies in this discussion, as in his recent meeting in Germany with Chancellor Schulz and more recently with the interim Prime Minister of the Netherlands, Mark Rutte, in The Hague.

Request additional immigration resources

Mr. Mitsotakis is expected to emphasize that the migration and climate crisis present challenges that make the current situation a priority for the whole of Europe.

Regarding migration in particular, in reference to what is happening in the Middle East, he will point out that it is very likely that frontline countries, such as Greece, will face new strong pressures on their borders, with new flows of migrants to be added. Currently, they are already burdened by the large numbers of refugees that our country hosts on its territory.

There is a consistent position that Greece’s borders are also European, and in this light the question of their protection is of concern to all Member States.

At the same time, he is expected to point out that a new European Pact on Migration and Asylum should be concluded soon, on the basis of solidarity and a fair distribution of responsibilities between member states.

Request to increase the budget for natural disasters…

Regarding the climate crisis, Athens’ position is that climate change has already “showed its teeth” in European countries, threatening not only national economies but also their citizens and their social cohesion, and that natural disasters require new resources in the EU budget. Especially for the Mediterranean countries.

“Exemption from defense”

Finally, the Prime Minister is expected to once again raise the request to exclude Greek defense expenditures from deficit calculations. At the same time, it was announced that the country is recording growth rates higher than the average of the Eurozone and the European Union. It achieves the fastest rates of debt reduction compared to any other European country.

The situation in Ukraine and developments in the Middle East are also on the summit’s agenda.