By Penelope Galliou
After closing the internal fronts one by one, the government focuses its gaze abroad and the strengthening of our country’s position through the strengthening and enlargement of existing or new alliances.
The multi-level fronts that opened inside, but also on the international scene, the Russian invasion of Ukraineimmediately pushed the Maximos Palace to launch or reaffirm strategic agreements and relations with a strong footprint and with a clear desire to further strengthen the country’s role and stability in the wider Eastern Mediterranean region.
In this context, it gives a strategic character to the already close ties between Greece and the United Arab Emirates the signing of nine more agreements between the two countries during his visit yesterday Kyriakou Mitsotaki in Abu Dhabi, which is the third consecutive visit since 2020. At the same time, the quadripartite teleconference of Greece, Cyprus, Israel and the USA of the “3 + 1” scheme for energy cooperation and security in the region, while the sealing of the multilevel international processes is the defense agreement Greece – USA that is voted on Thursday in the Greek Parliament.
The nine agreements with the United Arab Emirates
The agreements signed between Greece and the United Arab Emirates concern their areas investmentτης financial and technical cooperationτης industry and of advanced technologiesτης climate action, energy, health, police cooperation and standardization. According to government sources, these are agreements that consolidate and deepen the rapidly growing strategic cooperation between the two countries. Central to the development of financial relations is the renewal of the successful cooperation of the Hellenic Development Bank with the state Mubadala investment fund and the creation of a joint initiative for the realization in our country investments of € 4 billion, highlighting its attractiveness as a global investment destination.
As early as November 2020, the strategic nature of the relations between the two countries during which the Joint Declaration of the Broad Strategic Partnership between Greece and the UAE was signed, as well as the Cooperation Agreement in the fields of Foreign Policy and Defense. An agreement which, among other things, provided for the creation of a High Level Committee, which oversees its implementation, as well as the strengthening of defense cooperation on the basis of the 2007 military cooperation agreement, as well as a Mutual Military Assistance Clause.
After all, the United Arab Emirates is the most important investor in Greece from the Gulf countries maintaining a stake in a number of investments and this relationship is expected to be further upgraded.
During the meeting of the Greek Prime Minister with heir to the throne of Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan The prospects for further deepening and enlargement of the excellent bilateral relations were discussed and the two leaders exchanged views on the developments in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Middle East. The Prime Minister informed about the provocative behavior of Turkey and reiterated that this not only complicates bilateral communication, but jeopardizes stability in the region.
Developments in Ukraine and the new conditions in the European and international security environment were also discussed. The Prime Minister stressed that geopolitical developments demonstrate the need for an EU-UAE rapprochement on security, energy and the green transition.
The quadrilateral Greece-Cyprus-Israel-USA
Almost simultaneously with the upgrade of Greece’s strategic relations with the United Arab Emirates, a particularly important teleconference was taking place between the Foreign Ministers of Greece, Cyprus, Israel and the USA. of the figure “3 + 1”. Issues energy cooperation and security were again in the spotlight, with heightened interest due to international developments from the situation in Ukraine. The four Ministers of Foreign Affairs, Messrs. Nikos Dendias, Ioannis Kasoulidis, Yair Lapid and Antony Blinken, decided to intensify their cooperation in the fields of energy, economy, climate action, emergency preparedness and the fight against terrorism, contributing to resilience, energy security and interconnection in the region. They even decided to compile one road map with specific goals for next year and prepare the ground for a next meeting before the end of 2022.
According to diplomatic sources, in his speech, Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias underlined the commitment of all participants in the security and stability in the Eastern Mediterraneannoting that after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, energy security, as well as the diversification of energy sources, become even more imperative.
The new message of Nikos Dendias in Turkey
Under these circumstances, Nikos Dednias did not fail to send another clear message to Ankara Emphasizing that Greece’s firm position is that multilateral cooperation schemes, such as East Med Gas Forum are open to other countries in the region, provided that the participating States respect international law, such as the Law of the Sea, and of course the Charter of the United Nations, which explicitly prohibits the threat or use of force. In this context, he clarified “the threat of use of force, the revisionism, the constant violations of the sovereignty of other states, can not be a basis for regional cooperation.”
The agreement with the USA
Strong confirmation of the deepening and expansion of the cooperation and strategic relations between Greece and the USA is the defense agreement of the two countries that is expected to be voted in Parliament next Thursday. With the agreement the existing one is extended for five years and among other things they are referred to as fundamentals from which will operate and where American forces will be trained The Marblethe Alexandroupolithe Litochoro Shooting Range and the Souda. The agreement was signed in October 2021 by Foreign Minister Nikos Dednias with his American counterpart Anthony Blinken and as Mr. Dendias had stated at the time, it is “An agreement that safeguards Greek interests and an agreement that we believe creates a shield to protect our country. It also creates a shell under which the United States can invest in Greece, in improving not only the country’s defense facilities. , but also within a broader and more general framework of cooperation, which is created and improved “.
The exceptional level of the strategic defense cooperation between Greece and the USA, they underlined during the telephone communication that the Ministers of Defense of the two countries had, Nikos Panagiotopoulos and Lloyd James Austin. The two ministers also stressed the importance of the Mutual Defense Cooperation Agreement (MDCA) and Greece’s role as an ally in security and stability in the wider region, while developments in Ukraine were discussed and the US side acknowledged Greece’s practical contribution. Nikos Panagiotopoulos also informed his American counterpart about the recent developments in our region, emphasizing the need for full respect of international law and the principle of good neighborliness.
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