Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis called on German tourists to visit Greece this summer with the “breathtaking” argument that Greece is now a different country, “it has changed” and has no relation to Greece of 2010 or 2015. He made this unbelievable claim -that he was ashamed (?) of the country his own party also governed – to German BILD newspaper in an interview on Thursday.
“Greece of 2021 bears no relation to Greece of 2015 or of 2010,” he noted. “It is a different country. We no longer operate in an environment of so-called supervisors. We are a sovereign state. Yes, we remain under surveillance following the program, as it is called, but if we look at the changes we want to make, they are the changes we ourselves want to make because we have decided they will benefit Greece.”
He said further that by July and August – the tourist high season in Greece – things will resemble more of a normal summer,
He called on Germans to visit Greece, saying that people will want to travel and relax after the coronavirus pandemic.
He also estimated that Greece will have double the number of tourists it did in 2020, when numbers reached 25% of the 2019 tourist totals. He said trends allowed optimism.
Among several issues discussed, the Greek premier said he “has a very good relationship” with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and despite the disagreements he respects her as a European leader. “She is the voice of logic, but Germany is a very powerful republic. No republic depends on a single person – at some point, all political careers come to an end,” he added.
Asked to comment on the arrest of Belarus journalist Roman Protasevich in Minsk after his flight was diverted, he called the incident “a hijack” and said he read several theories about spies on board, allegations which are baseless.
PS the thumbnail picture of a Greek beach could not helped butcollapsed after reading such an immeasurable argument. Even my cat recalled the other PM in 2009, Giorgos Papandreou, also the son of a veteran politician, who was visiting European capitals saying “Greeks are tax evaders.”
Honestly, I have no idea how Kostantinos Mitsotakis and Andreas Papandreou raised their sons with.
Greece doesn’t seem to have changed one iota since I arrived here in 2006. Oh — I lie !!! The occasional supermarket has started to sell HP SAUCE !!!! Yay. That’s progress for you.
If you don’t like it….
Thanks j e for the reference to HP Sauce … I had never heard of it … now know it is an icon of British culture. It was the best-selling brand of brown sauce in the UK, with 73.8% of the retail market.
Having lived about a third of my life in Greece, during which time I have paid tax on my worldwide income to the Greek authorities in full and on time and spent my income into the Greek economy, I think I have earned the right to complain about over 5 decades of incompetent corrupt government without being told to go back where I came from.
It has nothing to do with how long someone has lived in Greece, or how much money they have paid to the government or into the economy, or what rights they think they have – the point is, nobody is forcing anyone to stay in Greece, so if it’s that bad just leave.
It ceretainly is a different country if the sand floats in the sky and the sky is underfoot, as the picture with this story indicates. Hahahahaha…. best error of the day
on purpose. not error.
Obviously you got injured in that tsipouro-explosion lately.
The only problem with greece is the government (any)………maybe start all over again with simple laws that make life better rather than worse? For example ……why should someone only be allowed assets that his salary justifies …..can’t he just save up for a pool or boat? In the rest of the western world these are not luxuries ….they are personal choices. You would think that the hottest country in europe would have the most pools rather than the least? This does not just apply to greece but greece seems to be making it worse rather than trying to correct it for the benefit of the people. It all is designed for the government instead of the people.