The need to speed up vaccinations with the third dose to address the Omicron mutation was stressed by the Prime Minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, in statements he made while attending the European Council.
“Today we will have the opportunity to have a detailed discussion on current issues in Europe, starting with the pandemic. There is obviously a strong concern about the onset of the Omicron mutation, which will sooner or later appear in all European countries, which is why it is imperative that we intensify the acceleration of vaccination with even greater emphasis on the third dose, which is the “The best line of defense we have,” he said characteristically.
Asked about the possibility of taking new measures due to the Omicron mutation, he spoke about increased testing during the Christmas period in order to save time and have more citizens vaccinated until the new variant “hits” our country.
“What we know about Omicron is worrying. The only answer is to speed up the vaccinations with the third dose and in Greece we were one of the first countries to open it for the entire population. If we need to take additional measures such as additional testing, I think it should be implemented at Christmas time, to save extra time to vaccinate as many people as possible. “It’s a battle against time, but every week we win before Omicron hits us is a win, because we will be able to have a larger percentage of the population that will be strengthened.”
At the same time, the Prime Minister announced new measures to alleviate households to limit increases in gas prices, but also special measures for farmers.
“There is strong concern about rising gas prices and we will ask that all options be considered in order to intervene at European level in order to curb the increases. “The Greek government will continue to provide as much as possible to limit price increases on both electricity and gas bills and will receive special provision for farmers,” he said, adding that he would make more announcements next Saturday in his discussion. budget.
According to Mr. Mitsotakis, the agenda of the Summit will also include issues related to the external aspect of immigration, emphasizing that Greece will insist on the need for a horizontal response to the phenomenon of instrumentalization of refugees. “Besides, our country was at the center of such a crisis in March 2020, which is why it provides full support to the Baltic countries, but also to Poland, which is facing a similar phenomenon,” he said.
Finally, the Prime Minister stressed the need for European autonomy in decision-making “so that it can defend its own interests on its own and align its economic power with its geopolitical capabilities”.
Follow Skai.gr on Google News
and be the first to know all the news
.
