News Stream

We will defeat our shared pandemic enemy and rise stronger in its wake

The story of U.S. leadership in the global battle against Covid-19 is a story of days, months, and decades. Every day, new U.S. technical and material assistance arrives in hospitals and labs around the world. These efforts, in turn, build on a decades-long foundation of American expertise, generosity, and planning that is unmatched in history....

The era of asymmetric threats

Kyriakos Mitsotakis would never have expected to star in a Greek edition of the perfect storm. Yet fate and events have put the Greek prime minister in charge of the country at a very crucial moment. He has shown determination in dealing with the migration/refugee issue, which has also bolstered his political image. The public was craving for a strong leader – a notion that was largely eclipsed by a sense of humiliation over the past 10 years....

Serious planning, not tough-guy posturing

Tsipras versus the US and Trump's intervention

Opposition leader Alexis Tsipras’ critical stance toward the extension of the defense cooperation agreement between Greece and the United States is a sign of inconsistency, as he is refusing to vote in favor of an agreement that he is effectively responsible for after negotiating its parameters when he was prime minister....

Tough dilemmas in Greek-Turkish affairs

Turkey’s claims in the Aegean were first brought to the table in 1973 and have escalated ever since, reaching successive peaks over 10 to 15 years and multiplying...

Attracting investments, relations with Turkey: A new chapter?

On a diplomatic level, the main event was Mitsotakis’ meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The two leaders discussed all the major issues. Aside from the chronic Cyprus dispute, where the situation has become even more complicated following the discovery of gas deposits, one of the most pressing issues at the moment is migration. ...

Safeguards against climate change

Climate change has become the main concern of the younger generations, and it seems it is the main issue that can spur them into action. The great majority of young people used to be strangers to politics and protest. Now politics is entering their lives as they realize that the decisions of those who rule the world, whether it is politicians or corporations, will decide their own future. ...

Mitsotakis in New York – opportunities, substance, results

This week will see the first appearance of Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis at the United Nations General Assembly. He will make the customary speech before the plenary and be received by the UN secretary-general. However, the substance will be in the meetings that are to take place on the sidelines of the proceedings. ...

Time to seek security guarantees

Diplomatic cliches rarely reflect reality, though in the case of Greek-American relations, they are indeed in the best place they have been in decades. ...

Greece-Israel, beyond the elections

The divided Israeli society has once again failed to reach a clear decision. The results of Tuesday’s elections have cast the country back into a cycle of negotiations. Center-left Benny Gantz and conservative incumbent Benjamin Netanyahu are weighing their options, while former foreign minister Avigdor Lieberman is pursuing the role of potential kingmaker...

Looking for true followers

Surely it is time for Greece’s most affluent citizens to step up, not out of self-interest, but in order to help the country through this critical time. As it starts to recover from bankruptcy, the country finds itself with scant resources and huge needs in key areas. Virtually all sectors – including defense, health, education and culture – have been seriously impacted by successive waves of budget cuts, a situation that has been aggravated by the failure of Greek politicians to implement bold measures. ...

The next six months are crucial

Since July’s general election, there has been a sense of optimism regarding the country’s course, especially in business circles, inside and outside of Greece. As we learn in the first lessons in economics, climate is everything. At the moment, we have a winning combination of trust and euphoria...

The uncertain landscape to the east

One of the Greek government’s biggest problems is its inability to get a clear reading of Turkey’s or rather of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s intentions...

Adults in the theaters

The film has been dismissed outright and its director, Costa-Gavras, until recently hailed as one of Greece’s top filmmakers, is suddenly being accused by some of getting carried away. Why? ...

Greece and the US: Commitments and credibility

The signals coming from the two centers of power in the United States, the president and Congress, are often conflicting, which makes it hard for Athens to carve out an effectual foreign policy. This conundrum is set to continue throughout the Trump administration...

Singing from the same hymn sheet

I feel that the success of the New Democracy administration will largely depend on Premier Kyriakos Mitsotakis’ ability to strike a balance between the two camps...

Authoritarian, divisive, hard right?

A few days ago, the New York Times published an opinion piece on political developments in Greece on its front page in which the author denounced the return to power of the “hard” right under the leadership of an “authoritarian” prime minister with “anti-democratic instincts.” ...

Substantive debate and ministers who listen

All of the participants on the Committee for Public Administration need to be applauded for the outcome. The former minister of administrative reform in the SYRIZA government, Mariliza Xenogiannakopoulou, publicly lauded the stance of State Minister George Gerapetritis, stressing that he showed a very creative and positive mood. ...

Tangible rewards for alliance-building

Greece's military spending has shrunk dramatically as a result of the crisis, widening the defense gap with Turkey. Successive Greek governments have spent billions on armaments over the past few decades, yet there is very little to show for it in terms of a defense industry. After an ambitious start, state-owned firms such as the Hellenic Aerospace Industry (EAV) and others were gradually choked by mismanagement from political parties and unionism...

Greece 2021

Milestones often present opportunities and the upcoming 200-year anniversary of the start of the Greek War of Independence in 1821 could serve as an opportunity for a new beginning...

The first visits to Washington and Jerusalem

It’s only three weeks since Nikos Dendias took over the foreign affairs portfolio, but he has already sent a pretty clear signal regarding the new government’s foreign policy priorities...

With courage and moderation

It is often said Greece’s post-dictatorship era ended with SYRIZA’s defeat. But how will we now close the accounts of the past and stop arguing about what happened 44 or 75 years ago? And how will Greece look ahead to resolve its accumulated problems – now we are done with ideological fixations and have lived the “dream” of the Left in power?...

Early signs of civility and consensus

Despite some natural degree of skirmishing and isolated criticism, rays of civility, consensus and cooperation are breaking out across the Greek political landscape. ...

The ‘public interest'

Greece can really take off. The economy has already reached its lowest point and is now poised for a spectacular rebound. The country’s human capital is unlimited in all sectors and for the first time in a long time we have a government that understands the notion of entrepreneurship and wants to move dynamically in the field of investments. ...

No time for mixed signals

We are entering a very thorny patch in Greek-Turkish relations. Turkey’s activities within Cyprus’ exclusive economic zone (EEZ), combined with the standoff with the United States over Ankara’s acquisition of the Russian S-400 missile defense system are increasing the tension further in Greece’s wider region. ...

Cyprus, diplomacy and the dizzying gas effect

The spin on political developments in Cyprus has had a dizzying effect on the public but state institutions seem unshaken...

Golden Dawn voters, women and Mitsotakis

Some foreign journalists have in recent days made two negative observations regarding New Democracy’s victory in the July 7 snap election and the makeup of the new cabinet...

Recovering lost ground

The government that has just taken power in Greece is different to what we are accustomed to and close to what a big chunk of the population is eager to see. The center-right administration appears well-prepared. The comparison is not only being made with SYRIZA, which was completely unprepared when it took over at a crucial period in 2015, but also with other supposedly experienced administrations before them. That said, in politics plans can be undone by unforeseen events. ...

Which way will SYRIZA go?

It will take a couple of months before we see what kind of style SYRIZA plans to adopt in its reprised role as the country’s main opposition party. For the time being at least, it appears willing to cut some slack to the new government of Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis. ...

The new government, image and symbolism

The first indications from the new government are sending out all the right signals. Tuesday’s handover ceremonies at the ministries confirmed a return to normalcy, after a decade-long crisis that painfully divided the country. Both sides should be given credit for the civilized political discourse that prevailed during the change of guard. It is hoped that this spirit will continue during the debates that are expected to take place in Parliament, not only in the sense of a more sophisticated rhetoric, but also, hopefully, in the approval of some government bills by the new main opposition....