“Energy issues were high on the agenda of the talks, at every level, in the American capital,” Costas Frangogiannis, the Deputy Foreign Minister for Economic Diplomacy and Extroversion, said in an interview with POLITICAL today.
In particular, Mr. Frangogiannis explains that the issue of Greek-US energy cooperation aimed at the transition to a new energy landscape for Europe, based on alternative energy sources, was the subject of a study presented at the Atlantic Council in May 18, which was followed by “a very interesting and constructive discussion”.
The prospect of American companies participating in the infrastructure projects for the interconnection of the energy system of Southeast Europe “he points out,” was on the agenda of the talks, in the meetings I had with both the American-Central European Business Association (ACEBA) and the American Investment Fund DFC. “And there is a strong interest in financing the development of innovative technologies in the field of renewable energy sources.”
Regarding the role of our country as a “liaison” in the energy sector, the Undersecretary of State for Foreign Affairs stressed that “Greece is already a hub for energy transfer to Eastern and Central Europe and many projects are underway to strengthening this role “. He referred to the new FSRU unit in Alexandroupolis, “which will be the source of liquefied natural gas for Bulgaria and other countries in Eastern Europe and the Balkans.” He adds that “in addition, the prospect of developing more FSRU units throughout Greece and increasing LNG imports from key suppliers, such as the US, is being examined.”
“With the additional qualities of a pillar of stability in the wider region and a strong ally of the USA,” Mr. Frangogiannis underlines, “Greece has all the resources to lead the collective effort, at EU level, to meet the difficult energy challenges and their serious impact on the daily lives of European households, with the support of the US. The US interest, as expressed during the visit of the Prime Minister, for the official inclusion of the United States in the tripartite energy cooperation Greece-Cyprus-Israel, in the 3 + 1 format, for the exploitation of the energy resources of the Eastern Mediterranean, comes to confirm that role of our country “.
At the same time, he is optimistic that, as Greece, we will make every effort within the EU to mitigate as much as possible the effects of the energy crisis on the daily lives of European citizens, and that “even bolder” decisions will be taken at the forthcoming Summit. by European leaders “in the direction of saving energy, diversifying its sources, but also halting the upward trends in their prices”.
Asked how the American side reacted to the Greek arguments for the escalation of the Turkish provocation, Mr. Frangogiannis stated that the Prime Minister “left no room for questioning his statements”, that he “presented to the Americans evidence of the Turkish aggression”. “The overflights over Greek islands- in a move that surprised many and certainly upset Turkey, but which I believe has already worked in support of the Greek positions and will work even more in the long run.”
Responding to the positive Greek-Turkish agenda, he explained that its promotion continues. “In fact,” he notes, “the next round of discussions on the positive agenda is scheduled to take place in Ankara on June 24th. The 25 topics of the positive agenda are developed in the fields of transport, environment, tourism, small and medium enterprises and important steps have been taken, eg to improve interconnection, to facilitate trade, to increase tourist flows from both sides, as well as and to strengthen cooperation in civil protection matters “.
Finally, when asked about US investments, he said he was “proud of the results of our efforts over the past two years”, as “foreign investment in Greece has increased significantly and especially in terms of US investments, the presence is indicative in our country of Amazon, Microsoft, Pfizer, Google “. He adds: “We are in constant communication with the US business world and we are working on ideas and proposals for important new projects with an emphasis on innovation, new technologies, renewable energy sources. I hope that soon we will be at a sufficient stage of maturity to make relevant announcements “.
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