Greece has drawn a hard line on Turkey's bid to freeze Cyprus out of COP31 climate talks, with Athens making clear that ...

Greece has drawn a hard line on Turkey's bid to freeze Cyprus out of COP31 climate talks, with Athens making clear that all 27 EU member states must be included or the bloc walks away entirely. Greek Environment and Energy Minister Stavros Papastavrou made the statement Thursday at the EU Environment Council in Luxembourg, where he voiced full support for EU Climate Commissioner Wopke Hoekstra's condemnation of Turkey's efforts to exclude Cyprus from informal preparatory meetings ahead of the November summit in Antalya. "Either all 27 are included, or none at all," Papastavrou said, framing bloc-wide unity as non-negotiable. Cyprus has reportedly been frozen out of key COP31 preparatory sessions by Turkish organizers, drawing sharp concern from EU partners ahead of the summit. Turkey, which is hosting COP31 in Antalya this year, has long refused to recognize Cyprus as a sovereign state, a position that has repeatedly created friction at multilateral forums. The exclusion attempt follows a familiar pattern of Ankara using host-country authority to sideline Nicosia from international processes. Papastavrou also raised water security as a pressing issue for Greece, noting that Athens had this week launched a public consultation on its first National Water Strategy. He announced 10 new infrastructure projects across nine Greek islands, including desalination units and upgraded water supply networks, framing water access as directly tied to national security and community survival, not an abstract environmental concern. The EU Environment Council in Luxembourg is also addressing climate emergency responses and European economic competitiveness as part of Thursday's agenda. #Cyprus #Greece #COP31