Menendez to Mitsotakis: Geostrategic center for Greece and its allies, the facilities in Alexandroupolis

He pointed out the geostrategic importance of the LNG (liquefied natural gas) storage facilities in Alexandroupoli during his meeting with Kyriakos Mitsotakis at Megaros Maximos US Senator Robert Menendez.

The prime minister praised Mr. Menendez’s contribution to strengthening Greek-American relations, peace and cooperation in the Eastern Mediterranean, for which, after all, the Senator was awarded the Grand Cross of the Order of Honor last August.

He made special reference to Mr. Menendez’s legislative initiative “US-Greece Defense and Interparliamentary Partnership Act”, which became US law in December 2021 and further upgrades bilateral cooperation, especially defense.

During the meeting, there was a review of the Greek-American relations, which are at the best level ever and the prospects for closer cooperation in view of the Fourth Round of the Greece-US Strategic Dialogue, which will take place in Athens in October.

International developments were also discussed, with the Russian invasion of Ukraine at the forefront. Mr. Menendez expressed his appreciation for the clear stance of the government, which has supported Ukraine from the first moment by offering humanitarian and defense material. He underlined that Greece is a stable democracy, a reliable partner and ally of the US in the south-eastern wing of NATO, but also a pillar of stability in the region.

They also exchanged views on defense cooperation and the new possibilities presented, on the occasion of the recent visit of the Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to Alexandroupoli.

The Prime Minister placed special emphasis on the economic and energy cooperation of the two countries, while he analyzed the importance of the infrastructure that Greece is developing for its energy security, the diversification of energy sources and the energy supply of Europe, due to its strategic position.

At the beginning of the meeting the following dialogue took place:

Robert Menendez: Congressional photo, historic photo. For you but also for the fact that you have two women standing behind you, the Speaker of the House and the Vice President of the USA.

Kyriakos Mitsotakis: Yes, it was a historic moment for me but I believe also for my country.

It gives me great pleasure to welcome you back to Greece. First of all, congratulations on your honorary doctorate. It is an important moment for the University but, I am sure, for you as well.

I would like to thank you again for what you have done to promote relations between our two countries. I know how hard you have worked. I believe that we have made a lot of progress in recent years and there is still a lot to be done, on many fronts, not only geostrategically and geopolitically, but also in the fields of economy, culture, education.

We are very happy that you have an extremely good Ambassador and I can tell you that he has already made his presence felt in Greece. We really look forward to continuing the great partnership we have.

Robert Menendez: We absolutely agree. We are very proud of our Ambassador. He has done an excellent job. I have known him for a long time, I was sure he would do an excellent job and therefore I am very happy. His nomination was quickly approved by the Foreign Relations Committee and the full Senate. We are also very happy to have your own Ambassador. She is an excellent representative of the Hellenic Republic.

I tried to keep a low profile on this visit but that’s not easy here. I went to Alexandroupoli and the development there, under your leadership, is excellent.

Kyriakos Mitsotakis: The progress is impressive.

Robert Menendez: I estimate that it will be a geostrategic center for Greece, for the region, but also for the Allies. I think it has unlimited potential.

Read the News today and get the latest news. Follow us on Google News and be the first to learn all the news from Skai.gr.