Стр. 4 - листалка

Author : Dimitrios Drutsas
Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Greece
It is my great pleasure to welcome you to this Conference held
under the aegis of the Russian and Greek Ministries for For-
eign Affairs.
The Conference comes at a very crucial and challenging time
for Europe. Today, more than ever, exploring perspectives on
European security is as important as coming forth with pro-
posals on the way ahead.
Our conference is particularly important for four reasons:
It is the first such Conference of its kind; it is taking place -
as I said - at a very crucial time for international affairs; it is
focused on issues of politico-military security; and it is a Con-
ference open to the wider public.
First of all, I would like to focus on the unique character of this Conference.
Today's event is the first Conference on European Security co-organized by Ministries for
Foreign Affairs, reflecting the engagement of both Greece and the Russian Federation in
this field and the will of both countries to enhance security in Europe. As emphasized in
the European Security Strategy: "We need to both think globally and to act locally."
The international community cannot afford to be complacent when it comes to unresolved
conflicts, security black holes and threats, be they inside or outside the Euroatlantic and
Eurasian area.
The second reason I believe this Conference is particularly important has to do with the
state of international affairs today. This state of play highlights how interlinked our security
is across the globe.
It is important to recognize that the international community cannot afford to be compla-
cent when it comes to unresolved conflicts, security black holes and threats, be they inside
or outside the Euroatlantic and Eurasian area. European security requires creative initiatives
and dynamic engagement on a bilateral and multilateral level.
This conference is a golden opportunity to prove that although foreign policy is by defi-
nition implemented by professionals, it is also an aspect of government policy that, like
any other, must remain as open and transparent as possible, always bearing in mind its role
in national security.
With this, I thank you for your attention and warmly thank Mr. Grushko for his personal
involvement and his team for the excellent cooperation with our colleagues in organizing
this Conference and the speakers for accepting our invitation.
Электронное приложение к журналу «Международная жизнь»
To Think Globally and to Act Locally