A full-length interview with CNN and Christiane Amanpour was granted in New York by Kyriakos Mitsotakis. Immigration was the main subject of the discussion, with the prime minister stressing the importance of cooperation with Turkey. He added, on the occasion of the controls at the borders of Germany, that “the solution is not to exceed or unilaterally violate the rules of the Schengen zone”.

Initially, Kyriakos Mitsotakis was asked about the meeting he had with Recep Tayyip Erdoganon the sidelines of the UN Summit.

“It is very important to have open channels of communication and of course on the issues we disagree on, such as the definition of maritime zones, to do so in a specific way, that is to say that the issues can be resolved based on international law, but also to cooperate on issues like immigration and we have made progress in tackling the problems. What we want is to stop the boats before they enter our territorial waters. To do this we want the cooperation of the Turkish authorities and I would say that we have made progress in the last year, creating better channels of communication. Because immigration is a terrible issue and we don’t want to leave it in the hands of traffickers to decide who gets into the EU or put their lives in danger.

I believe we need both a fence and a wide open door. It is important that the E.U. to defend its external borders. At the same time, there must be legal channels for the benefit of immigration in an organized manner, both for humanitarian reasons and for economic reasons. Greece, for example, was the country that accepted hundreds of women from Afghanistan when the country was on the brink of collapse.

So we have humanitarian sensibilities, but at the same time we want to send a message to countries like Egypt for example, that we can welcome workers to Greece, they can come legally, stay, work safely and they don’t have to embark on a dangerous journey through Aegean Sea to reach Greece. And I believe that this should be the cornerstone of a modern policy in the E.U.

The solution is not to exceed or unilaterally violate its rules Schengen zone. Here we are talking about a compromise that must be put into practice.”

When asked about the situation with migrants in the Aegean and the interventions of the Greek authorities, the prime minister said:

“First of all let me say that there was no involvement of the Greek Coast Guard yesterday. It’s an example of what happens when someone wants to break the rules in bad weather. The Greek Coast Guard intervened to investigate the incident. At the same time, we reserve the right to intercept boats in sea waters and of course not in the open sea, because the border, as you know, is quite close and we are cooperating with the Turkish coast guard to get these people back to Turkey safely.

But the most important thing is that we don’t want any boat in the sea, no boat in a wreck. Because these Turkish authorities can help us. Because that way we can avoid any tragedy. We don’t want loss of life on a dangerous journey and of course we don’t want traffickers to decide who will make this journey and who won’t.”

In question about the war in Middle EastMr Mitsotakis said: “We have made it clear to our Israeli friends that there are opportunities for a ceasefire. And these opportunities were not adequately used. If there is no such thing, there will be no release of the hostages and at the same time there will be a proliferation of destruction, while Hezbollah will always find a push to attack Israel. So it seems to me that it is also in Israel’s interest to have a ceasefire as soon as possible. Of course, we don’t want to exaggerate, nor to overestimate our own strength. But I want to emphasize that we are a good friend of Israel and I think that friends should speak out, even if it is a hard truth that needs to be told to a friend, while at the same time we align our vote to the Security Council accordingly.”

When asked about the failure of the US to reach an agreement on a ceasefire in the Middle East, the prime minister emphasized: “Indeed, the term of Biden is ending. Maybe this is an opportunity. It’s an opportunity to do anything, can, anything possible to stop him. Because the consequences are dramatic. There are also financial implications. Look what is happening in Erythra. Greece is the largest maritime nation in the world. We are clearly concerned about safety and freedom of navigation. We have a Greek tanker that was attacked by the Houthis. So there are many consequences of this crisis, including the impact on the cost of living, which is the number one priority for all Western countries. So, it’s not just a question, an issue for the Israelis and the Palestinians or the Lebanese, but it’s a regional dispute with global dimensions.”

Regarding climate change, Kyriakos Mitsotakis said: “The Mediterranean, as you know, is a arena of climate change. We also saw flooding in Central Europe. So the climate crisis is already here. What does this mean? We need to invest much more, not only in mitigation, but also in adaptation. In Greece, for example, we use advanced technologies of drones, artificial intelligence to identify large fires as fast and at the same time we did well, with the exception of one large fire, a large fire. The forests we lost were significantly less than other years in the warmest summer. So we have to be at the forefront, but this has to be a European initiative when we look at the resources that we have available in Europe. We focus on the green deal, but we focus very little on short-term adaptation. Because from the moment these changes hit us. We are talking about something catastrophic, whether we are talking about fires, whether we are talking about major floods, and we need to do much more as Europe to convince our citizens that on the path to climate neutrality we will be by their side if a disaster occurs.”

Regarding the Green Deal, Mr. Mitsotakis emphasized that “the green deal is an ambitious goal, but it cannot come at the expense of industry or the decline of the quality of life. What does this mean? If some adjustments need to be made, I wouldn’t call it violations, I would say some realistic adjustments. Let it happen, let it happen and I think that would be in the right direction.”

In a question about the Parthenon sculpturesMr. Mitsotakis emphasized, “First of all, let’s agree that I think it is important for world cultural heritage that these sculptures be in Athens along with the rest. Because we are talking about a reunion and not a return. He is not the same Christian and uses an analogy. If we cut the Mona Lisa in half, it’s in the Louvre, half in the British Museum. Would that be nice? So we are having good faith discussions with the British Museum. I think the new British government might be more open, although it is not up to them to decide that mutually there will be a settlement and an agreement that will allow the Sculptors to be reunited and for us all to see them under the shadow of the Parthenon , where they always belonged. I think we have a very serious argument and we will continue the efforts. I’m optimistic. We’ve been waiting 200 years, but clearly it’s something very important and it’s imperative for us. It’s very high on my agenda.”