Cyprus is getting an important portfolio that has a massive field of action, Costas Kadis, Cyprus’ nominated EU Commissioner who was proposed by the President of the European Commission for the Fisheries and Oceans portfolio, said on Tuesday.
It was one of the portfolios he would be happy with, he noted, since it is also related to the experience he gained as Cyprus’ former Minister of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment.
In his statements to Cypriot journalists in Strasbourg, after the announcement by Ursula von der Leyen of the assignment of the portfolios to the new composition of the College of Commissioners, Kadis said that it was an “extremely great honour” for Cyprus and for him personally that the proposals of the President of the European Commission include his own name with the portfolio of Fisheries and Oceans.
“This is an upgraded portfolio”, as it emerges through the political guidelines of the President of the European Commission, which aims at the sustainability of the fishing area, but also of Europe’s oceans, he noted. He also said that the development and agreement by all member states of the Pact for the European Oceans, would be one of his main pursuits in the coming period.
Kadis noted that he was currently focusing on his preparation ahead of the hearings before the European Parliament.
Asked if this was a portfolio he wanted, Kadis said it was one of the portfolios “that I personally would be happy with, since it is also related to the experience I gained at the Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment”, which, he noted, had under its responsibility fisheries issues and marine research.
“But also, as a scientist who dealt more generally with the issues of the environment and the preservation of biodiversity, all these issues have a direct relevance to the portfolio I am taking on, if of course everything ends positively as regards the hearings before the European Parliament”, he added.
He also said that Cyprus was getting “an important portfolio that has a massive field of action”, and with a significant budget.
