President of the Republic of Cyprus: The Middle East, energy cost, and EU competitiveness will be discussed at the European Council

The situation in the Middle East, rising energy cost affecting the EU’s competitiveness, and Ukraine are the issues that will dominate today’s European Council meeting, said the President of the Republic of Cyprus, Mr Nikos Christodoulides.

In his statements to journalists upon his arrival today, 19 March 2026, at the European Council Summit in Brussels, President Christodoulides noted the following: “Among the items on today’s European Council agenda, I would highlight two, which I believe, along with Ukraine, will be the three dominant issues. I am referring, of course, to competitiveness and the crisis in the Middle East. These two issues are interconnected, since the situation in the Middle East and its impact on rising energy costs also affect the competitiveness of the EU. Of course, the discussion on competitiveness will not be limited to energy cost.

What is expected following the informal European Council we held here in Belgium in February, regarding competitiveness, is the presentation by the European Commission of a very specific timeline with concrete deliverables that will strengthen the EU’s competitiveness. I would like to point out that, considering what we have achieved on defence and security issues in just one year, from the informal European Council in February 2025 to today – during which time we achieved far more than all that we had been discussing for decades – I am optimistic that the discussion on competitiveness will yield results. It is a very important sector for the EU and also falls within the framework of strengthening the EU’s autonomy, an autonomy that affects all sectors across the board.

Regarding the second issue, coming from the EPP, where we had a lengthy discussion and spent considerable time on the situation in the Middle East, it is important that two very specific messages be sent through this discussion. First, that the EU is genuinely concerned about the situation in the Middle East. I disagree with some comments made that this is not something that concerns the EU. So, the first clear point is our interest in the situation in the Middle East. I mentioned earlier how it affects us – just one aspect of how it affects us.

The second point – this is the key issue I raised yesterday with the President of the European Commission and the President of the European Council, I have just mentioned it to the EPP, and I will also mention it to the European Council – the countries in the region with which we are in contact are expecting some kind of initiative to bring this war to an end. An initiative that I believe we, as the EU, should discuss today, to play a role in such an initiative, because if no initiative is taken, the continuation of this crisis will continue to have a negative impact on all of us. So, that is the second thing I expect from today’s discussion. 

Thirdly, there are two other aspects I would like to mention. Support for Lebanon. There is an official, public proposal from the President of Lebanon for discussions, for talks with Israel, following our own initiative. A specific reference to this has been included in the Conclusions of the European Council. This was something the President of Lebanon himself asked of me. Beyond that, if there is a positive response from the other side, we are ready, within the framework of the excellent relations we have with everyone, to assist as the Republic of Cyprus in this direction.

Regarding Article 42 (7), we have seen, from the response we received in Cyprus from European member states, what it means in practice for Article 42 (7) to be invoked. We did not invoke the Article, but we saw it in practice through the reaction of a number of countries. And taking advantage of this opportunity, we, as the EU, must have the mechanisms in place to determine how the activation of this specific Article is carried out operationally. I also discussed this with the President of the European Council – primarily with the President of the European Council, but also with the President of the European Commission; I have just mentioned this to the EPP, and I will raise it at the European Council – one of the issues we will bring up at the informal meeting to be held in Cyprus on 23 and 24 April is the specific actions to be taken when and if a state invokes Article 42(7).

And I conclude with the discussion we will have with the Secretary-General, a discussion I consider important, in the sense that a message will also be sent at the level of the 27, by the President of the European Commission, the President of the European Council, regarding the EU’s interest in the efforts to resume talks and resolve the Cyprus Problem, always on the basis of the agreed framework”.