Referring to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Foreign Secretary points out that what has been happening lately reminded him of Churchill’s words in Fulton, Missouri in 1946, that an “iron curtain” is falling over Europe
Greece reacts calmly and stays within the framework of International and European Law, the Minister of Foreign Affairs makes clear, Nikos Dendias, regarding Turkey’s aggressive statements. In an interview with the “Action24 Press” newspaper, when asked about Erdogan’s aggressive statements against Greece and personally to Mr. Mitsotakis, he characteristically emphasizes that the country does what it has to do, reacts calmly, repeats its positions, does not get involved in personal disputes, it does not personalize the disputes, it stays within the framework of International Law and the European framework that serves its interests. “We are not an expansionist country, we do not claim anything from anyone, we want a European framework, an area of democracy and protection of human rights” he notes, adding that respect for the human being is the best for our society, but also for Turkey, and expresses the hope that at some point the “opposite” society will come to the same conclusion.
At the same time, Nikos Dendias puts forward a unified understanding of the value framework to which Greece must be led, “let the like-minded Greeks continue, let us have an understanding of where the country should go”, as a necessary and sufficient condition for our country to respond to the challenges in order to maintain a course towards progress. “If it exists and applies, then, regardless of the size of the challenge, the country has the human resources to face it. If, on the other hand, there is a breakdown of the inner front of a single vision of the future, then there will be a huge problem“, he notes.
In this spirit, the Minister of Foreign Affairs underlines that the government tried in the context of foreign policy to create a model of national reconciliation and mutual understanding. In particular, he states that there is nothing that has been done in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and for which the opposition parties were not informed, at regular intervals, the options and reasoning became known to everyone, this resulted in an understanding of where and how we are doing. In fact, he emphasizes that “this we can transfer as an example to society».
Besides, he finds that in matters of foreign policy there is a maturity and a supra-party, unified perception of the common good and observes that “this is a great achievement if one considers that Hellenism has always been divided on matters of foreign policy”.
When asked about what was the turning point where there was a change of mentality in our foreign policy, Nikos Dendias answers that the point in time when even Greek society to a certain extent realized that there was a significant problem in the approach that had been followed, was the non-existent one Turkish-Libyan memorandum. There it became clear that Greece ran a huge risk of being isolated from the sea, he points out. The sense of this danger, the minister expresses his conviction, has led to a new self-awareness that there is a need for the country to quickly secure what it is entitled to and to develop a more complex approach to things, moving away from the simplistic “I have differences with Turkey” , “I am right and the world community will reward me” and going into an alliance with a number of countries.
Referring to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, he points out that what has been happening lately reminded him of Churchill’s words in Fulton, Missouri in 1946, that an “iron curtain” is falling over Europe. He estimates that the Russian invasion of Ukraine violently turned a page, changed the world and it is not easy for Russia under the same leadership to be able to reverse the climate and submit to a system of values and perceptions that it has largely destroyed. There will be enormous suspicion, he adds, and suggests that a huge effort is needed to make the small countries near Russia believe again that it does not threaten them. “I hope one day he will understand the value of this effort and pay for it. But seeing her attitude, I wouldn’t be optimistic“, he says.
Subsequently, he emphasizes that investment foreign policy is a necessary goal. “We in this Ministry of Foreign Affairs tried to bring as much as possible foreign good practices and to bring the country in contact with investment destinations” he says and focuses on the economic dimension of the country’s relations with Israel and the United Arab Emirates. “All this is important monitoring of a policy that looks beyond the narrow zone of “Turkey” or “North Macedonia” or “Albania”“, he notes.
He also favors the ambition for Europe to have an autonomous defense capability, alongside a close relationship with the US and a unified framework of democratic values.
Furthermore, he points out that the Greek society is right to have the feeling that it must be able to defend the homeland alone, underlining that this does not mean that we will not create the widest possible framework of alliances, but we will create it much easier, and with a much greater confidence if we can stand on our own.
In relation to the Western Balkans, it highlights that Greece’s historical interest is for this region to join the EU safely.We may have second thoughts, we may be bothered by things, but we have to put them aside, look at the big picture, and understand that all these countries are very difficult to stand if the EU does not embrace them. Otherwise it is very difficult to stand the economy, democracy and their institutions».
In fact, he identifies as a major challenge in the Western Balkans the creation of an institutional framework similar to the European one and focuses on the fact that the major European effort in the Western Balkans must be to truly become European countries. The historical mission of Greek society, he emphasizes, “is to help these countries join Europe.”
Finally, the Minister of Foreign Affairs demonstrates that the foreign policy must be much broader and much more multi-layered and emphasizes the protection of the environment and the seas. In this light, it refers to the organization by Greece, in coordination with the USA, in 2024, of the 9th International Conference “Our Ocean Conference”. “So we came forward and together with the USA, we are going to do something about the seas of the planet, which by the way also serves the national interest, because this framework has rules for the protection of the open seas“, he concludes.
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