N. Dendias: We are no longer observers of developments but we have a role in them

“We are prepared for all possibilities in 2022 and ready to face all kinds of challenges,” said Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias in an article in the newspaper “Eleftheros Typos”, where he describes the expectations and challenges for the new year and adds that the new year is expected to be as intense as the outgoing year.

As he mentions, last year there were important developments in foreign policy, as two extremely important defense cooperation agreements were signed, with traditional allies of Greece, France and the USA.

Contacts with partners in Europe, as well as in the wider region, the Western Balkans and the Middle East have been intensified and new channels of communication have been opened with countries that play an important role in international affairs.

The Foreign Minister recalls that he had frequent contacts with the vast majority of the 15 Members of the Security Council, including the permanent members: France, the United Kingdom, the United States, China and Russia.

At the same time, he adds, Greece strengthened its relations with all of Greece’s neighbors, including Turkey, in “contacts during which I reiterated our country’s positions, which are based on International Law and especially the Law of the Sea.”

“Looking ahead to 2022, we can already see our basic expectations and the great challenges we are called to manage,” he points out and adds:

“My expectation, as well as that of the entire Mitsotakis government, is to build on our already very close relations with the traditional allies, building on the foundations of recent agreements, as well as the Memorandum with another very important ally, Great Britain.”

He also points out that Greece must further cultivate a strong position in its wider region, both in the Balkans and in the Middle East. “We are no longer observers of developments, but we have a role and a say in them,” he said.

“We are a factor that shapes our environment and a measurable force that promotes peace and stability. The voice of Greece is now heard and taken into account by powerful states and international organizations,” he said.

“But we are not resting on our laurels,” he said. “In order to maintain our position, we must continue to invest in our diplomatic relations and alliances. And we must also continue to open up to the world, to seize the opportunities that arise.”

According to him, its purpose is to continue contacts with Sub-Saharan Africa. In the near future, the minister announced that he will visit Nigeria and Angola, two of the largest economies on the continent.

“We also need to strengthen ties with countries in Asia and Oceania, such as India and Australia, forces that embrace the same principles as us, such as full respect for the law of the sea. And of course we should not leave it out. “Latin American countries with which we have a lot in common,” he added.

However, as Mr. Dendias underlines, “in parallel with the initiatives we undertake, we are called to address challenges, existing and new”.

“I am not optimistic, based on today’s data, for an improvement in Turkey’s attitude towards our country, although I would really like to deny it,” he said.

“Regardless of how much its foreign policy will be affected by the known issues that have arisen within it, it goes without saying that we must be constantly vigilant. To face vigorously the ongoing Turkish challenges in Greece and Cyprus, as well as the “Immigration of immigration. And to promote the law of our positions to our partners and allies.”

It also refers to the issue of the rise of nationalism in the Western Balkans which continues and now threatens the very existence of the states in the region. “In regression and revisionism, we must put forward a realistic European perspective, with the always known conditionality,” he said.

Finally, he notes, Greece will be called upon to manage reshuffles in the European arena and explains: “We want to build ties with the new German government. We have already made an important step with contacts, as long as the Greens were in opposition. But it is a fact that this is not discounts something, as now the data is changing “.

“At the same time, in France, which will hold the EU presidency in the first half of 2022, presidential elections will be held. Regardless of the outcome, attention will inevitably be focused largely at home. they will have found their gait before the passage of certain months “.

“If one can make a prediction for next year, it is that unfortunately the pandemic, for several months from today at least, will affect the lives of the whole planet, but with the reasonable hope that there will be even more effective ways of dealing with it scientifically.” , concludes Mr. Dendias.