Former President of the Hellenic Republic and Academician Prokopis Pavlopoulos reiterated that Greece and the broader West must assume the historic role that corresponds to them vis-à-vis Turkey in order to resolve the Cyprus issue. He spoke at the conference “Athens: Political Dialogues – Athens Policy Dialogues,” held on December 4–5 at the King George Hotel and organized by the Council on International Relations, the Delphi Economic Forum, and To Vima.
Pavlopoulos voiced his concern that “Turkey wants to swallow Cyprus” during a discussion with Dimitra Kroustalli, Managing Editor of To Vima, as part of the session “Resolving the Cyprus Issue as a Prerequisite for Stability in the Eastern Mediterranean.” He stressed that Turkey’s broader strategy toward Greece ultimately leads to the “Blue Homeland” doctrine, involving claims in the Aegean and Thrace.
Journalist Dimitra Kroustalli, Managing Editor of To Vima.
Cyprus’ Critical Role
Responding to a question on whether the current geopolitical moment is conducive to meaningful progress on the Cyprus issue, Pavlopoulos stressed that Cyprus retains a critical role—geographically, politically, economically, and in terms of energy. “Even if prospects did not appear promising in the past, they are now necessary. Greece, moreover, has a particular responsibility to contribute in this direction,” he noted.
According to Pavlopoulos, the Eastern Mediterranean is undergoing a “cosmogony” of developments in which Cyprus is pivotal. In this context, he argued, Greece must apply pressure so that a potentially historic opportunity is not lost. If Turkey seeks a role in the emerging regional architecture, he said, it must accept that Cyprus cannot remain under occupation.
Former President of Greece Prokopis Pavlopoulos.
Expressing his displeasure at the recent statement by U.S. Ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack—referring to Cyprus “as an abscess in a healthy body”—Pavlopoulos underscored the total absence of any institutional footing in such remarks, which raise serious questions. He explained that references to cooperation “from the Caspian to the Mediterranean,” effectively delineating the space of the former Ottoman Empire, and calls for parties to “sort things out,” bypass both International Law and the Law of the Sea.
He emphasized that no agreement can be reached in defiance of established international norms, stressing that International Law also binds Turkey, while describing the Turkey–Libya maritime memorandum as legally void. When asked whether the institutional framework of International Law also binds U.S. President Donald Trump, Pavlopoulos replied that international rules cannot be adapted to the political will of whichever actor happens to be economically powerful at a given moment.
He added that the European Union must not accept the regional role assigned to it by the United States, warning that if Europeans fail to defend their own historic and institutional identity, the U.S. itself will ultimately be weakened — since its relationship with the EU has been a cornerstone of American power.
