AKEL general secretary denies anti-European stance

AKEL General Secretary Stefanos Stefanou addressed allegations from the President of the Republic regarding his party's stance on a government request. The government had requested an urgent six-month extension for the operation of the Deputy Ministry of European Affairs. Stefanou argued that disagreement with government policy does not equate to being anti-European, accusing the President of deflecting criticism onto the opposition. He stated that the government submitted the request as an urgent matter at the last minute instead of planning for a parliamentary discussion. AKEL proposed that the issue should have been referred to the Parliamentary Committee on Foreign Affairs for proper evaluation. Stefanou emphasized that his party needed to hear the government's justification before making a decision. He reiterated that a lack of proper government planning forced the emergency parliamentary procedure.