DIKO President Nikolas Papadopoulos launched new critiques against the government in an interview with Politis. The DIKO leader expressed regret that his party’s cooperation with the President of the Republic, Nikos Christodoulides, was not achieving the desired outcome.
Mr. Papadopoulos stressed that DIKO has not given a “blank cheque” of support to the current administration and will disagree where it believes the government is making mistakes. “We believe in the government’s programme and want to assist in its implementation, but the President of the Republic is the one who must decide whether he wants to improve the way his governance operates or whether he wants to continue with a problematic cooperation,” he noted.
Warning on the Interconnector Project
At the same time, Nikolas Papadopoulos turned his “fire” toward the Cyprus-Greece electrical interconnector project, warning that if it were allowed to collapse, it would constitute “the worst geopolitical defeat for Cyprus since the S-300s.”
When asked where exactly he disagrees with the handling of the issue, Mr. Papadopoulos spoke of the project’s geostrategic importance for Cyprus. He expressed concern over the delays and contradictions, which he says are being voiced by government officials.
“The GSI (Great Sea Interconnector) will bring us cheap electricity, end our energy isolation, and transform Cyprus into an energy conduit for the entire Eastern Mediterranean,” he explained. “We note that Cyprus and Greece fought battles in the past to exclude Turkey and the occupied territories from the European energy network. We greatly fear that if this project is led to collapse, Turkey and the occupied territories will re-enter Europe’s energy game. And if that happens, it will be the worst geopolitical defeat for Cyprus since the S-300s.”
Future Cooperation with DISY
Referring to his party’s future political direction, Mr. Papadopoulos noted that the continuation of cooperation with the Democratic Rally (DISY) in the next parliament is essential. He reminded listeners that the centre-right has cooperated with DISY, even when it was in opposition, “to integrate the country into the euro, to pull Cyprus out of bankruptcy and the Memorandum, and to set the economy on a growth path that is currently one of the best in Europe.”
Therefore, he added, “not only is there a prospect of cooperation with DISY in Parliament, but I believe that this cooperation is the only shield our people have against the economic destruction that the forces of the extremes and populism will bring if they prevail in the next Parliament.”