The president of the European Council, said the European Union would decide in the coming days, based on the UK’s next proposals, whether it should continue with trade talks.

Speaking at a press briefing Charles Michel said: “It is important to take into consideration all our conclusions and I think the message we send, it is a very clear one – we are determined to negotiate, we are determined to reach an agreement, but we know that there are some difficult topics.

                <p>Also high in the Council's priorities is the pandemic, with coronavirus outbreaks exceeding 38 million worldwide and six million in Europe. The 27 leaders of the member-states are expected to discuss both the coordination of their actions and the creation and distribution of vaccines against Covid-19.</p><aside><strong class="trendig-now-label">VIRAL ΕΙΔΗΣΕΙΣ</strong>
</aside><p>Turkey's continued unilateral actions will once again occupy the summit, just weeks after the special summit on EU-Turkey relations, following Ankara's latest moves. "The European Council will assess where we are, regarding the situation with Turkey," a European source told reporters, underlining the "EU's solidarity with Greece and Cyprus".

At the same time, the same source noted that “the president of the European Council is closely monitoring the situation.”

                <p>"[This is] a fact that proves Turkey's unreliability but also its contempt for the conclusions of the European Union summit on October 1-2," he added.</p><aside><strong class="trendig-now-label">VIRAL ΕΙΔΗΣΕΙΣ</strong>
</aside><p>"The European Council is meeting again today. Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis is already in Brussels, where both he and the President of the Republic of Cyprus, Nicos Anastasiades, will outline the latest challenges from Turkey to the leaders of the EU member states, with the opening of the Famagusta beach front and the sailing of the Uruc Reis in areas that overlap with parts of the Greek continental shelf. Especially the fact that both of these provocative moves by Ankara directly conflict with specific paragraphs of the conclusions of the recent summit," he said.

The government spokesman stressed: “Greece remains firmly committed to the position expressed by the prime minister since the first incident involving the Turkish research vessel and is summarised in the phrase: The challenges stop, the talks begin.”

He reiterated that exploratory talks with Turkey cannot be held under a regime of threats and blackmail. “There can be no exploratory talks as long as the Oruc Reis remains within the Greek continental shelf. Turkey can not pre-empt the discussion with a research vessel in the area that we are supposed to delineate. Greece confidently insists on diplomacy and continues its efforts to strengthen its strategic alliances. Our positions are already being adopted, not only by the EU but also by the United States, which has abandoned the tactic of equal distances and has denounced Turkey for unilaterally stoking tension in the region, calling on Ankara to end this pre-planned provocation and immediately begin exploratory talks with Greece.” He said, however, that “at the same time, Greece is doing on an operational level what it did the first time the Oruc Reis came out, what it should do.

The armed forces are acting in the framework of their mission to defend the nation’s interests. They have proven many times this year that they are capable of efficiently doing their job.” Continuing Thursday’s press briefing, government spokesperson Stelios Petsas referred to the government’s economic policy, stressing that “the budget for 2021 was drawn up in an environment of unprecedented uncertainty, globally, due to the indeterminable ending of the most serious health crisis of the last hundred years.

In addition to the uncertainty associated with the coronavirus pandemic, our country is facing the – also exogenous – challenges of Greek-Turkish relations and migration flows, as well as natural disasters affecting thousands of our fellow citizens, to whom the government has already demonstrated its support.” He underlined that: “In this unprecedented situation, the income of Greeks is projected in the basic fiscal scenario to remain almost unchanged for the two-year period 2020-2021. The government aims to overcome the crisis, with the economy and the society upright, while laying the groundwork for rapid recovery and high, sustainable, smart and inclusive growth.”

II. EU-UK relations

3. The European Council recalls that the transition period will end on 31 December 2020 and notes with concern that progress on the key issues of interest to the Union is still not sufficient for an agreement to be reached.

4. The European Council reaffirms the Union’s determination to have as close as possible a partnership with the United Kingdom on the basis of the negotiating directives of 25 February 2020, while respecting the previously agreed European Council guidelines, as well as statements and declarations, notably those of 25 November 2018, in particular as regards the level playing field, governance and fisheries.

5. Against this background, the European Council invites the Unionʼs chief negotiator to continue negotiations in the coming weeks, and calls on the UK to make the necessary moves to make an agreement possible.

6. As regards the Internal Market Bill tabled by the UK government, the European Council recalls that the Withdrawal Agreement and its Protocols must be fully and timely implemented.

7. The European Council calls upon Member States, Union institutions and all stakeholders to step up their work on preparedness and readiness at all levels and for all outcomes, including that of no agreement, and invites the Commission, in particular, to give timely consideration to unilateral and time-limited contingency measures that are in the EUʼs interest.

8. The European Council will remain seized of the matter.

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