BRUSSELS – “It has now become a commonplace in Europe, even in countries where we did not expect it, that national means, national capabilities are limited when it comes to dealing with the effects of the climate crisis as regards the issue of fires and that it is no longer just a Mediterranean phenomenon,” Climate Crisis and Civil Protection Christos Stylianides said on Tuesday in statements to public broadcaster ERT after the informal council of crisis management ministers in Brussels.

At the same time, he underlined the need for a “common European response.”

“This year has been a very difficult year for Europe … Even yesterday the mechanism was activated for the first time from Germany. We had such phenomena this year. The discussion was thorough. All the ministers who took the floor I believe adopted a position which, perhaps when I was commissioner and we were trying to implement rescEU, was not as unanimous as it is today. This is very encouraging. It has now become commonplace in Europe, even in countries where we did not expect it, that national means, national capabilities are limited when it comes to dealing with the effects of the climate crisis as regards the issue of fires and that it is no longer just a Mediterranean phenomenon. That is why I think that the conclusions drawn by Commissioner (for Crisis Management Janez) Lenarcic were proof of this unanimity: that we need a common European response, we need to be together, to increase the budget of rescEU, the European Civil Protection Mechanism, because that is the only way we will provide satisfactory solutions, only in this way will we be able to limit the effects of the climate crisis in this sector,” he said.

(ANA/I. Zarkadoula)