I am a person of action. If I see I can bring a positive change, I will go for it, never mind that something might be hard to achieve.

Hard work, courage and commitment - these are the key elements for success.

There are many examples of female leaders who are not afraid to take responsibility and openly face the challenges in the worst situations.

I am happy and proud that during one year of presidency, my initiatives have been strongly supported by the people and society and we have launched the process of vitally important state reforms.

Some countries need extra stimulus in specific areas. Something has to be done against high youth unemployment in Greece and Spain, for example. But in the end, there is no way around it: The debt levels have to come down.

Women are more focused on the development of the quality of life in their countries. They are more involved in social and family policies, childcare, and poverty reduction.

For a small open economy that trades mostly with the euro zone it makes absolute sense to be part of the currency union. Our currency has already pegged to the euro since 2002. We don't have an independent monetary policy. We are regulated by the European Central Bank in Frankfurt, but we are not able to reap all the profits. Our businesses want to save the transaction costs.