Hours before the meeting with US President Donald Trump at the White House, Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras spoke about the agenda of the talks and the importance of Greec ein the region. He called on investors to trust Greece.
“Greece is a pillar of stability and security in the wider region,” Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said in an exclusive interview to Washington-based Greek-American weekly “Greek News” just hours before the meeting with US President Donald Trump. The Greek Prime Minister said a message to the US administration, stressing the growing dynamics of the strategic relationship between the two countries.
Tsipras said Greece is regaining a key role in the European and regional developments and it is moving steadily on a path of economic development, leaving behind the tough period that unfortunately has cost the country in many fields beyond the economy.
“In this context, the growing dynamics of our strategic relationship with the United States – especially in the economy, energy and defense / security – is crucial. With President Trump, we will have the opportunity to discuss all these issues,” Tsipras said describing the agenda of his talks with the U.S. President, on Tuesday.
Answering a question on Greek national issues, Tsipras said that Greece has a series of open issues and it has consistently defended its sovereign rights on the basis of international law, while at the same time it seeks to consolidate stability in the wider region.
“The ending of the aggression of the Turkish side in the Aegean Sea, a mutually accepted solution to the issue of FYROM, and a just and viable solution to the Cyprus problem, are not only for the benefit of our country but also for the benefit of Europe and the international community. I am convinced that our dialogue and cooperation with the US Administration in this direction can only benefit our interests and the region,” he said.
“My commitment is,” Tsipras promised the Greek American community, “that we will continue unhindered on this path, which ensures the continuous upgrade of the country’s position internationally and protects our sovereign rights and our national interests. In such a course, the upgrading of our strategic relations with the US remains an ongoing goal, in the context of a sincere cooperation and mutual respect, as is the case today.”
Greece is emerging from the economic crisis and upgrading its geo-strategic role in an extremely important and, unfortunately, increasingly destabilized region. We are in an extremely positive, but also crucial period for our country, which is regaining its prestige; moving away from mistakes of the past.
“It is clear that given its interest in the stability of the region, as well as our extremely important defense cooperation – including in Souda Bay – the United States has a particular interest in working towards this direction. We are at a time that the foreign policy objectives of Greece find common points with US strategy in the region,” he added.
On the economy, Alexis Tsipras described Greece as a country synonymous with determination and hard work, a country that overcomes difficulties and it is once more in a position that is worthy of its people and history.
“I think this is acknowledged by the US leadership, and for that reason, there is a growing interest on their part to further accelerate the recovery process in our country,” he noted.
“President Trump has a long track record in business. He knows when an investment could be beneficial and when not. Looking at Greece today, I think he can easily realize there are large investment opportunities in critical sectors of the economy. “
Prime Minister Tsipras stressed the progress of Greek economy the reforms that were legislated and the predictions of the international financial institution for 2017 and next year.
He sent to Greek-American and US investors the message “Those who trust Greece today can only gain”, he said.
Full interview in Greek News
The meeting between Tsipras and Trump is scheduled for October 17th.
Gain what? Tax fines and paper cuts from beuarocratic red tape that you can only get through if you trust corruption.
If you have no property rights or free market in Greece where do we start?