of Penelope Galliou
The last “touches” on his agenda of the Prime Minister’s trip to the USA puts the staff of the Maximos Palace, in view of his key meeting with US President Joe Biden on May 16, but also the important speech of Kyriakos Mitsotakis in Congress a day later.
After all, the fact that he is the first Greek Prime Minister to speak at a joint meeting of the House of Representatives and the US Senate, reflects the enhanced role that the US plays in our country, as a factor of stability in the wider Eastern Mediterranean region.
The Turkish provocation
Having in his “luggage” the now voted defense agreement between Greece and the USA, which in its preamble explicitly mentions the “mutual protection of sovereignty and territorial integrity against any threat, even armed attack”, the Greek Prime Minister will put the American president escalating Turkish provocation, which will be reflected in specific data and facts as Kyriakos Mitsotakis is expected to present figures and specific data on the illegal overflights of Turkish aircraft over Greek territory and the risks it poses to security and stability. of our country but also of the wider region.
The F16 in Congress
As stated in yesterday’s debate in Parliament, special reference will be made to the Wall Street Journal article on the US State Department’s request to Congress for upgrade Turkish F16 and possible sale of aircraft in Ankara.
An issue that the Greek side is downgrading, as it is not considered to affect relations and Washington’s support in Athens, but because they do not view this move positively, the prime minister, according to information, has included it in his agenda.
Government sources understand that especially in the difficult times created by the war in Ukraine, Washington does not want to remove Turkey from the Western alliance, but as they noted, this will not be allowed to be done to the detriment of our national interests. After all, Athens’s firm position is that dialogue and good neighborly relations with Turkey are always in demand, but under the non-negotiable condition of respect for International Law.
As the Prime Minister stressed in his speech in Parliament on the issue of Turkish F16, Congress has the floor, noting that “Congress has so far refused to discuss in any way the sale of weapons systems to Turkey, precisely because they do not consider Turkey credible. partner “.
Kyriakos Mitsotakis’s speech at the Congress will be a rare opportunity for a Greek Prime Minister to clearly articulate Greek positions and to unfold the full range of Greek-Turkish relations with the dangers posed by Turkish delinquency.
Issues that will be raised during the contacts that Mr. Mitsotakis will have with members of the Congress, who have always stood by Greece and supported it, such as the senator and chairman of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, Bob Menendez.
And the economy on the agenda
Apart from the geopolitical issues, however, Kyriakos Mitsotakis’s trip to Washington will have an economic dimension, which is also given importance. Besides, it takes place a few weeks after the economic upgrade of our country and the debt and as revealed by government sources, American funds are waiting to come to invest in our country, creating new jobs, strengthening local communities and the Greek economy. In recent years, investments have already been made by large American companies such as Pfizer and Microsoft in Thessaloniki, Amazon Web Services, etc.
Giving impetus to others to follow.
The US Assistant Secretary of State, in a recent interview, stated that there are opportunities not only for American companies in Greece, but also for Greek companies in the US, highlighting the fields of technology and innovation.
“Innovation is at the heart and we are trying to build on our shared experiences that will lead us to the next step, which is to look for the energy of the future,” he said, adding that some very important agreements have been reached in recent years between US and Greek companies, expressing the belief that “we will see more in the future”.
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