Cyprus tenure shows Irish the way

Cypriot president Demetris Christofias has insisted a small country facing a serious economic crisis can head up the European Union in an effective fashion.

The upbeat assessment will be welcomed by Taoiseach Enda Kenny as he prepares to address the European Parliament today.

“We showed that a small country can carry out a good presidency," Mr Christofias told MEPs attending a plenary sessions of the parliament in Strasbourg yesterday morning as his country’s six months at the helm last year was formally assessed.

He said his country’s promotion of co-operation and good relations among the EU institutions was the Cypriot presidency's "fundamental political achievement", and said the deal setting up a banking supervisor, further agreement on establishing a common asylum policy and the deal on a unified European patent system were highlights of his country’s presidency.

Commission president José Manuel Barroso described the Cypriot presidency as "very successful”, a sentiment which was echoed around the chamber.

However, it wasn’t all good news for Cyprus. Some MEPs voiced concerns over the country’s willingness to tackle an ongoing economic crisis and the political tensions which persist as a result of the division of the island.

In a backhanded compliment, Dutch MEP Corien Wortmann-Kool congratulated the Cypriot presidency on the substantial progress it has made in dealing with its economic woes, but went on to say it had “not succeeded in applying a credible plan" for the country to exit the crisis.

British Liberal Democrat MEP Sir Graham Watson said he "regretted" that progress had not been made on issues such as "reform of land laws and establishment of a banking ombudsman".

While the morning was concerned with the past, the afternoon was more preoccupied with future matters.

Austrian chancellor Werner Faymann was in the chamber to discuss what lies ahead for the EU. In a lengthy question-and-answer session with MEPs he said it would be “somewhat cynical” to suggest the euro zone financial crisis was over, but pointed out the “apocalyptic forecasts” which had been made by some 18 months ago about the collapse of the euro had not been borne out.

He told the chamber the EU would only survive “by sticking together”, highlighting the importance of enhanced financial regulation and economic governance across the union.

The address came a month after German chancellor Angela Merkel held a similar Q&A session with MEPs. Other national leaders will outline their vision for the EU to the parliament in coming months.