Wildfire burns near critical infrastructure in northern Greece

By Constantine Capsaskis

Newsletter Editor

Welcome to the weekly round-up of news by Kathimerini English Edition. Even as the end of summer is fast approaching, Greece is once again battling with a large fire front in a critically important location in the north of the country, this time near the port of Alexandroupolis.

The fire, that broke out on Saturday morning and has been fuelled by strong winds, has already led to?the evacuation of several settlements near the town. Hundreds of firefighters and volunteers, dozens of vehicles and aircraft are all on scene in an effort to control the fire.

While it is a sight that is becoming all too familiar for many, the fire near Alexandroupolis threatens more than just homes, livelihoods, the flora and fauna. Similar to the fire in Nea Aghialos before it, the?blaze in northern Greece is near a strategic lynchpin?in both regional energy and military security.

The port of Alexandroupolis, that recently secured 24 million euros in European Union funding for further improvements, has recently become one of the most important?points of entry for United States military supplies across the eastern flank of NATO.

However, apart from an arms hub, Alexandroupolis also?figures prominently in EU plans for energy security in the Balkans.

In March 2022, President of the European Council Charles Michel attended the inauguration of work on a new Floating Storage and Regasification Unit (FSRU) stating that it would help end energy dependence on Russia and will provide “security of supply to Greece, Bulgaria, North Macedonia, Serbia, and other countries in the region”.

These same concerns have also recently prompted?the revival of efforts to construct a crude oil pipeline?from the Greek port to the Bulgarian Black Sea port of Burgas.

Spotlight

• The attack on United Nations peacekeepers?by Turkish Cypriots attempting to encroach on the buffer zone between Cyprus and the occupied north of the island was strongly condemned by Athens, with Prime Minister Kyriakos?Mitsotakis contacting Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides?to express “my strong disapproval of the unacceptable attacks”. The prime minister noted that “Greece and Cyprus are perfectly coordinated to take the appropriate actions at the international level”. The Foreign Ministry also condemned the attacks as a “blatant violation of the status quo”, calling for an immediate stop to all illegal activity. Main opposition party SYRIZA also condemned the attack and called for “constant pressure on the Turkish and Turkish Cypriot side to end this dangerous policy”. The incident has also been condemned by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al Sisi, the Chairman of the United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations Senator Bob Menendez, and?members of the United States Congress.

• Mitsotakis also met with UEFA President Alexander Ceferin?on Wednesday in the aftermath of the deadly soccer violence last week. The two decried instances of hooliganism, with Ceferin referring to it as the “cancer of football”. The?prime minister also announced the closure of soccer fan associations, stating that all teams will have one club housed at the team’s headquarters.?Mitsotakis and Ceferin also met with the owners?of Greece’s largest teams.

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OPINION

The leading power in Southeast Europe

By Tom Ellis

Editor-in-Chief, Kathimerini English Edition

On Monday, the Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos?Mitsotakis is hosting most of the leaders of the Western Balkans?in another sign of Greece’s crucial role in the region.

As tensions in certain areas are on the rise, the unofficial gathering is an effort?to build on personal relationships to deal with the regional political, economic and security outlook, with a goal of achieving more regional cooperation and thus stability and growth.

During the informal dinner, the leaders of the region?will touch upon aspects of the enlargement process?and the?steps towards full EU?membership?which Greece fully supports, not only in words but in deeds;?provided of course that certain conditions are met,?as some?countries struggle with issues?like civil freedoms, the?rule of law and transparency.

In this context, the imprisonment by Albania of Fredi Beleri,?the recently elected ethnic-Greek mayor of?Himare, a town in southern Albania populated predominantly by ethnic Greeks, which has dismayed Athens and has drawn criticism by European officials,?is not an encouraging sign of behavior from?Tirana.

Greece’s latest initiative, coming just days after Prime Minister Mitsotakis hosted European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in Crete,??highlights Greece’s role as a pillar of peace and stability?that was further enhanced by the 2018 Prespes agreement.

As a longtime member of both NATO and the EU,?Athens acts as a guarantor of the region’s security, and?in today’s volatile energy set up,?as a crucial?hub with broader strategic repercussions, as the war in Ukraine has proven.

In coordination with both Brussels and Washington, Athens?is pursuing its role as?the leading economic and military power in Southeast Europe and a protagonist in promoting democracy in the region.

CHART OF THE WEEK

The Social Security Debt Collection Center (KEAO) is preparing a slew of measures ahead of the autumn to increase the collection of payments from debtors to the country’s main social security fund (EFKA). The KEAO is focusing particularly on recent debts, that in theory should be easier to collect, as well as debtors who owe significant sums of money. The authorities are hoping to collect more than 1.6 billion euros in 2023, with the total level of debt having rocketed to more than 46 billion euros.

ESCAPADE

19 Reasons to Visit the Ionian Islands

Strewn along Greece’s west coast, the Ionian islands are renowned for their spectacular natural beauty, emerald seas, and rich, cultural traditions.

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ECONOMY IN A NUTSHELL

1. “Continued economic concerns led to the?fourth consecutive week of losses?for the Athens Exchange (ATHEX) general index. The benchmark closed at 1,236.34 points, a drop of 1.83%.”
2. “Experts believe that the?Greek real estate market’s prospects continue to be promising, at least in the near future, with sustained increased in prices and the further development of important projects. This is also true of hotels, with?more than 1,400 new rooms being built?around the Athens metropolitan area alone.”
3. “The Global Wealth Report compiled by Swiss bank UBS illustrates that Greece is?significantly less wealthy than other southern EU countries, namely Italy and Spain, with less than half the average wealth per adult. It also claimed that there are 79,000 dollar-millionaires in Greece, significantly less than those countries even accounting for size disparities.”

WHAT'S ON THE AGENDA

21/08/2023

West Balkan dinner: Greece will host the leaders of the West Balkan states including Serbia, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and others including Moldova, Kosovo, Bulgaria, Croatia, and Romania,?to discuss European enlargement in the area?on the 20th?anniversary of the EU-Western Balkans Summit in Thessaloniki in 2003.

22/08/2023

SYRIZA hopefuls tour: Ahead of the upcoming leadership contest in main opposition party SYRIZA, leadership candidates are set to tour the country with former ministers Efi Achtsioglou visiting the city of Patra and Euclid Tsakalotos visiting the city of Ioannina this week.

22/08/2023

Samaria Gorge re-opens: The Samaria Gorge on the island on Crete will re-open to the public after it was closed in the aftermath of an earthquake that left one tourist seriously injured.

PODCAST

Saving Athens: Climate change and an architecture for a new age

Prof. Petros Babasikas, head of the architecture program at the University of Toronto who has also led a key research on how Athens can adapt in the age of climate change, joins Thanos Davelis to look at what steps Athens can take today to become more resilient.