"An assault on Cyprus means an assault on Greece"

“An assault on Cyprus means an assault on Greece”. This is what Deputy Prime Minister Theodoros Pangalos said to parliament, stressing that "it is a big mistake for Turkey to intervene in arguments with intimidation", and noted "we must see our neighbor as a necessity by convention. We did not choose them. They are the ones who came and found us and settled there."

This was preceded by LAOS president’s George Karatzaferis taking a position; he said: "I must urge the prime minister not to ask to move back the start of drilling (in Cyprus). You have no reason to provide a solution to Turkey’s mistake. Nobody wants war but we have to make the Turk understand…". Furthermore, he stressed "there is a big problem in Thrace. The question is whether we admit it or sweep it under the carpet. The difficult situation of the country should not be construed as our weakness. Turkey is escalating its provocations. The wife of the Foreign Minister came with an army of doctors to do circumcisions on Greek children who are Muslim by religion. Some have begun to turn their gaze firmly towards Thrace. Unfortunately, the Greek government does not respond. The Turkish consulate does as it pleases. I am not one of those clamoring for consulate removal, but we should make them understand what should be done."

Pangalos admitted that the Muslim minority in Thrace "is the reason that our neighbors express their concerns and provisions, which they do not own" and left an open window for a party meeting to discuss the problems in the region, or integrate the matter into the parliamentary committee.

Meanwhile, Cypriot President Demetris Christofias stressed the need for vigilance and preparedness to address the Turkish threats designed to intimidate the Cypriot Republic and prevent the utilization of the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).

In these circumstances, he said, the National Guard should highlight the virtues and values of responsibility and conscious discipline, and be a reliable and well-trained deterrent.

Speaking this morning at the Presidential Palace, during the inauguration eremony for the new deputy leader of the National Guard, Major General Andreas Petrides, President Christofias noted that the armed forces are required to safeguard the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the semi-occupied homeland, as well as the freedom and dignity of the Cypriot people.