Athens, 7 November 2023

35th Regional Assembly Europe of Parliamentary Assembly of the Francophonie concludes

The 35th Plenary Session of the European Region of the Parliamentary Assembly of Francophonie, hosted by the Hellenic Parliament, was concluded today.

The main theme of the meeting was "The War in the heart of Europe: towards the creation of a new world order", while today's discussion revolved around the "Future prospects in a fragmented world and ways of building a multi-centred global governance".

First speaker was Mr Evangelos Venizelos, former Vice-President of the Greek government, who raised concerns about the effectiveness of global governance today. He stressed that "Russia's attack on Ukraine demonstrated the limits of the institutional capacity of the UN and the Security Council. At the same time, he pointed out that the EU and the Council of Europe have not taken initiatives capable to contribute to the end of the war in Ukraine and to consolidate peace in the region. Although the United States has not completely lost its leading role in the world system, there is an emergence of new powers and a multitude of open fronts, especially in the Arab world", he noted. "We must", he stressed, "keep a close eye on the balance of power that is forming at the global level, trying to preserve the legacy of liberal democracy".  

Following, Mr Georgios Prevelakis, Professor Emeritus at the Panthéon-Sorbonne University (Paris 1), took the floor and emphasised on the destabilisation of the global "geographical space". "The destabilisation", he pointed out, "began in 2008 with the economic crisis, continued with the coronavirus pandemic crisis and afterwards with the geopolitical crisis caused by Russia's attack on Ukraine". At the same time, he stressed, "the climate crisis is growing and deteriorating. Through these crises is emerging a world divided between the West and the rest of the world". In this context, he pointed out the crucial role that the Francophonie can and must play in the global governance and especially in the French-speaking countries of Africa, which show a significant growth potential, as an agent of dialogue and culture.

In her statement, MP Katerina Notopoulou, member of the Hellenic Parliamentary delegation to the Assembly, stressed that climate change, the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as the energy and food crisis of 2022, confirm that the problems we face today are truly global in nature and require global solutions. Progress cannot be achieved through bilateral and regional interventions alone, but it requires a globally coordinated action, she noted. "We must," she added, "act together in order to consolidate peace by providing support to Ukraine against the Russian invasion and by supporting efforts that favour a two-state solution capable of meeting the legitimate aspirations of Palestinians and Israelis to live in peace".  "At the same time," she stressed, "the efforts to achieve a just, balanced and viable solution to the Cyprus issue must be strongly supported."

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