Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis participated today in the first day of the NATO Summit in Madrid, which is taking place in a period of intense geopolitical developments and in an international environment that has undergone tectonic changes due to the Russian attack on Ukraine.
At the beginning of the Summit, the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy spoke via teleconference. The leaders of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization had the opportunity to reiterate to Mr Zelenskyy their support for Ukraine’s independence and sovereignty and to condemn Russian revisionism.
The leaders of the NATO member states have adopted the New Strategic Doctrine, which reflects NATO’s strategic adaptation to the new international security conditions, both due to the observed geopolitical changes and due to the gradual increase of hybrid threats.
In his speech, Kyriakos Mitsotakis highlighted the importance of the fact that the Alliance has demonstrated unity, speed and determination in dealing with the Russian invasion of Ukraine and stressed the need to continue in the same direction.
Mr. Mitsotakis underlined that it is extremely crucial the sanctions decided on to be implemented by all member states, for substantive and symbolic reasons. He also reiterated that Greece stood on Ukraine’s side from the very beginning and pointed out that the Russian invasion has made it clear that NATO’s mission to defend territorial integrity, human rights and International Law is not merely empty rhetoric.
The Prime Minister also referred to the progress regarding the accession of Finland and Sweden to the Alliance and expressed his satisfaction that the respective difficulties have been overcome.
On the sidelines of the NATO Summit, the Prime Minister met with his British counterpart Boris Johnson, with whom he recently had a telephone conversation. During their meeting, they highlighted the perspective of further deepening the bilateral cooperation between the two countries and they set, as sectors of priority, the following: trade, shipping, energy, digital technology, innovative technologies, defense and tourism.
Concerning the issue of food security, the Prime Minister stressed that the Greek fleet and the Greek ports are ready to play a crucial role in transporting Ukrainian grain to international markets.
The Prime Minister also met with his Swedish counterpart, Magdalena Andersson, to whom he expressed his full support on the accession of Sweden and Finland into the Alliance, stating his satisfaction about the recent developments.
Kyriakos Mitsotakis also met with his Canadian counterpart Justin Trudeau. In a warm climate, the two leaders discussed issues of cooperation between the two countries, which complement this year 80 years of official diplomatic relations. They specifically referred to the dynamic Greek community in Canada, which constitutes a vivid and uninterrupted tie between the two countries, as well as to the ever-expanding economic and trade cooperation.
The Prime Minister met in person with the newly-elected Australian counterpart of his, Anthony Albanese. During their first meeting following the assumption of Mr Albanese’s duties, the two leaders had the opportunity to reaffirm the traditionally exceptional level of the bilateral relations between Greece and Australia and briefly review their entire spectrum. Particular emphasis was given on bilateral economic cooperation and attracting investments.
