Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Evangelos Venizelos, following the Foreign Affairs Council held in Luxembourg on 21 October, had the opportunity to discuss with journalists the challenges facing the Greek Presidency in this field.
Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras visited Malta and Italy on Monday 21 October 2013 as part of an initiative focusing on illegal immigration. His visit was held in the light of the upcoming Greek EU Presidency in January 2014, to be followed by the Italian one on the second semester of 2014.
Commissioner in charge of agriculture Dacian Ciolos was in Athens on 15 October, responding to the invitation of Greek Minister of Rural Development and Food, Athanasios Tsaftaris, for talks and exchange of views with the Greek leadership on subjects such as preparations of the Greek Presidency and the new Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) for the period 2014-2020.
The pre-presidency Trans European Policy Studies Association (TEPSA) conference, organized in view of the upcoming Greek Presidency of the Council of the European Union by TEPSA and the Greek Centre of European Studies and Research (EKEME), with the support of the European Commission Representation in Greece, was held in Athens between 10 and 11 October 2013 under the title “To overcome the crisis, the EU must move ahead”.
In a period when unemployment has reached record-high rates in most EU member-states, affecting especially the young, growth cannot but figure as a matter of overriding importance for the Greek Presidency.
“Our proposed logo resembled a sailboat in full sail, formed from the initials of the European Union suggesting that EU citizens are sailing together towards a common future.”