Mr. President, Ministers and Members of Parliament, distinguished members of the business community, I would like to extend my warmest thanks to the Hellenic Federation of Enterprises, Mr. President, as well as to the Greek-French Chamber of Commerce and Industry for organizing today’s meeting.
I would like to thank the Niarchos Foundation for its excellent hospitality, and I would also like to thank everyone who contributed to the successful organization of this very important Greece-France Economic Forum.
The discussions that preceded were extremely substantive and fruitful, laying a solid foundation for the further development of new partnerships and the strengthening of productive ties between the two countries, paving the way for new investments and collaborations. In other words, for an even more ambitious chapter in Greek-French cooperation across many and varied sectors.
The friendship between Greece and France is, after all, founded on a solid foundation, on relations of mutual trust with historical depth, but also on a shared European consciousness, forged during critical moments in history, with French political thought consistently viewing our country as an integral part of the European architecture.
I cannot forget, dear President, that Greece became the tenth member of the European Economic Community in 1981 because the then French President Giscard d’Estaing insisted on it, overcoming Germany’s objections at the time. I believe we will always be grateful for his persistence, which essentially changed the fate of modern Greece.
But Greece, too, has always regarded France as an indispensable strategic partner -a country that perhaps understands better than any other the geopolitical and cultural significance of my homeland for our continent.
And this historic closeness, as we had the opportunity to reiterate today, found its strongest expression in the strategic partnership agreement we signed in Paris in 2021, just a few months before the war in Ukraine began -a landmark agreement, the upgrading of which we decided today with President Macron.
I would say, therefore, that the two countries are closer today than ever before-politically, strategically, economically, educationally, and culturally. In fact, I would say that this model of cooperation is perhaps the most advanced form of strategic partnership that Greece has developed with any other member of the European Union.
I believe this is an observation that is both critical and timely, as we are living in a period of major geopolitical realignments, in an era of uncertainty, competition, an era of major technological upheavals, and a world that is changing at a pace we have not been accustomed to in recent decades.
The questions Europe must address in this context are of crucial importance for our own future and for the future of the generations to come: how we will safeguard our security, how we will strengthen our competitiveness, how we will protect our social model -and let there be no doubt, improving the competitiveness of the European economy is a prerequisite for maintaining this generous social model, which ultimately distinguishes us
from other regions of the world -and how we will position ourselves at the forefront of technology and innovation.
And my -our- response to the above is that Greek-French cooperation can effectively serve as a model for the ways in which Europe as a whole could move forward: through strategic thinking as well as concrete practical decisions, with greater strategic autonomy and more joint investments, with stronger defense cooperation, with a unified industrial policy, but above all with unity and solidarity among the Member States of the Union.
For, indeed, while the crises we face may be many, they also give rise to many new opportunities. The response to these crises -and to the emerging opportunities- cannot be inaction, and it certainly cannot be fragmentation. On the contrary, it must be joint action, step by step, with perseverance and a sense of shared purpose.
Having now spent many hours with the French President at the European Council -we are now both among the most experienced heads of state and government in the European Council- we know that Europe does not always move at the pace we would like. But when called upon to make critical decisions, in recent years it has risen to the occasion, because, as Robert Schuman said: “Europe was forged through crises and is ultimately the product of the response it gave to those crises.”
It is precisely this solidarity that we are called upon to put into practice today. We saw it, after all, expressed in concrete terms when, together with the French President, we visited Cyprus a few weeks ago, which had come under attack on its territory by Hezbollah. In this way, we sent a message of support and assurance regarding the territorial integrity of the Republic of Cyprus.
We are now called upon to send a similar message regarding the economy by investing in energy, technology, innovation, defense, shipping, and the full spectrum of infrastructure. Indeed, this is a challenge to which I am confident the business communities of both countries will respond positively, and I thank the French President, who is accompanied by a very important delegation of companies that are already investing in Greece or intend to invest in our country.
To be more specific, I would say that the debate on European defense is no longer a theoretical discussion about the future. It is an immediate geopolitical necessity. This is because, for many decades, our continent has addressed its security primarily through its alliance with the United States. However, times are changing; threats are multiplying and becoming more unpredictable.
And I would say that our two countries have been at the forefront of the discussion on strategic autonomy for years now. And when we met this morning aboard the frigate “Kimon,” I was thinking that essentially what we achieved in 2021 was to put joint European defense cooperation into practice before it was enshrined in European law.
Imagine that we are building eight ships together with France -ships that are practically identical- with economies of scale, with the participation of Greek shipyards -a participation that we expect to grow over time- with interoperability, and the opportunity to learn from one another in the ongoing upgrading of these highly complex surface ship platforms.
Greece and France have been advocating this approach for years, and we are pleased that many more countries in the European Council now share this view.
In fact, President Macron recently boldly raised the issue of nuclear deterrence at the European level, enhanced defense cooperation among states -in which our country is also interested in participating- in exactly the same spirit: to gain, as Europe, greater strategic self-confidence, but also greater responsibility for our collective defense.
All of these are concerns already evident in the 2021 defense agreement, which in a sense served as a precursor to current developments. Because the issues that concern us now -strategic convergence, joint exercises, co-production, strengthening the defense industry, or even the practical implementation of the mutual assistance clause -Article 42, paragraph 7 of the European Treaty- are all reflected in this already significant agreement.
Ladies and gentlemen, Greek-French cooperation must move forward -and is moving forward- beyond the traditional supplier-buyer relationship, toward a model of substantive co-production. A process that will connect the Greek and French ecosystems on many different levels.
Because even though we may have visited a state-of-the-art ship today, we know that the theater of operations is changing rapidly. Our focus must shift much more toward cutting-edge areas, such as cyber defense, unmanned systems, and defense against unmanned systems. The Greek Defense Industry has developed an innovative system that is already being installed on Greek Navy ships. I am referring to the “Centaurus” system, which has proven its capabilities in the operational field.
Greek startups are currently facing many challenges and are launching and developing innovative products. The same is true in France, and I believe our biggest challenge is precisely how we can bridge the gap between these two ecosystems, with the Greek and French public sectors potentially being the first to procure innovative systems, which can then be sold to other European countries.
But, of course, in addition to strategic autonomy, we are here to discuss improving the competitiveness of the European economy. It is a priority that is becoming a necessity, given that, unfortunately, Europe is falling behind both the United States and China in terms of competitiveness and productivity, as well as in the field of artificial intelligence. It is now essential to be able to move faster and more boldly in many areas.
Mr. President, you have truly made impressive strides in the innovation ecosystem. France is at the forefront of European leaders in the field of artificial intelligence, and it is precisely this connection between Greek startups and French companies that I believe can generate many and varied opportunities: opportunities for growth, opportunities to create many well-paid new jobs.
And of course, I would like to conclude with one more important shared priority, which concerns the financing of the very ambitious goals that Europe has set, whether we’re talking about defense, competitiveness, or the climate crisis.
The diagnosis, my dear Emmanuel, has been made by all of us; it was first and foremost made by Mario Draghi and Enrico Letta in the very interesting studies they conducted.
We know what we need to do. We know that we need less bureaucracy and a simpler regulatory framework. We know, Mr. President of the Eurogroup, that we must complete the Savings and Investments Union as soon as possible. We know that we must invest, Mr. President of the Hellenic Federation of Enterprises, in our human capital and to finally assess how education and training relate to the rapid changes that will take place in the labor market, where many jobs will no longer exist in a few years’ time, but many new ones will be created.
And we also know, dear Minister of Environment and Energy, that we must take concrete steps to finally achieve a single European energy market, in which, on the one hand, renewable energy sources will play a leading role, and on the other, we must be certain that we have enough stable energy to cover any gaps arising from the fact that the wind does not always blow and the sun does not always shine.
Dear Emmanuel, as we speak, our country is a leader in renewable energy. Today, we may even have negative prices at certain times of the day, precisely because we invested in renewable energy sources and have much lower energy prices than our neighbors, transforming us from energy importers into exporters.
On the other hand, however, we are well aware that baseload power will always be necessary. That is why I welcome the initiative you have taken to give new impetus to Europe’s nuclear industry, in which France plays a leading role. All of these are discussions that must take place, and they must be conducted with honesty and courage.
To conclude, what I can assure you is that Greece and France, France and Greece, are fully aligned in this effort.
And it is truly a great pleasure for me to welcome President Macron to Athens today on a very important visit, along with his delegation, not only to sign the significant agreements we have signed, but to confirm that behind the texts, behind the strategic agreements, there is something deeper, which I believe you described very vividly, dear Mr. President, in your speech yesterday at the Presidential Palace: there are bonds of respect and love between our peoples.
And, as you said yesterday, that France loves Greece, I can assure you that Greece loves France just as much.
Again, welcome to our homeland.
