President Nikos Christodoulides will use his intervention at the European Council on Thursday to stress the importance of activating Article 42/7 of the EU Treaty, and to push back against voices within the bloc — including EU High Representative Kaja Kallas — who have argued that the Iran war is not Europe’s concern.
Christodoulides publicly expressed his disagreement with that position on arriving at the European Council earlier on Thursday. Government circles said his remarks were also a direct response to Kallas, who said after last Monday’s Foreign Affairs Council that “this is not Europe’s war,” while acknowledging that European interests were affected by the crisis.
Nicosia is reported to be particularly irritated by Kallas’s stance, which diplomatic sources in Brussels say is seen as failing to account for the direct impact the war has had on Cyprus — an EU member state — including the drone strike on RAF Akrotiri.
According to diplomatic sources in Brussels, Nicosia is investing heavily in securing a decision on Article 42/7 activation. Christodoulides is said to have received positive signals from EU institutional leaders, with both European Council President António Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said to be favourably disposed towards decisions on activating the article when an EU member state comes under threat.
Government sources added that Nicosia had not originally intended to seek Article 42/7 activation, as its immediate security needs were being met by forces deployed by Greece, France and Italy.
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