PM Mitsotakis: Greece seeks to deepen energy cooperation with the United States

“First of all, I would like to welcome you to Athens. Your presence here today coincides with the anniversary of September 11. It is, of course, a day charged with deep emotion. I would like to begin by expressing my abhorrence and sorrow over the heinous murder of Charlie Kirk,” emphasised Kyriakos Mitsotakis, as he welcomed U.S. Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum at the Maximos Mansion on Thursday.

“Political violence has no place in our democracy, and freedom of speech must be protected at all costs,” underlined the Prime Minister.

He then referred to Chevron’s official interest in hydrocarbon exploration in Greek waters: “You are arriving at a very interesting moment. I believe this is an opportunity to reaffirm the strategic partnership between our two countries, while placing a particular focus on energy and energy cooperation. I find it a very interesting coincidence that you are visiting just one day after Chevron formally expressed its interest in launching exploratory activities south of Crete, thereby reaffirming the sovereign rights of the Hellenic Republic in that region. We are also particularly pleased that we can speak about Greece’s regional role as a pillar of energy security for the wider area. We are now a country that exports natural gas. We are a major hub for the import and export of natural gas in the region. We export electricity, we export petroleum products, and this makes us a very strong player in the Eastern Mediterranean. We look forward to further strengthening this partnership between our two countries, for the benefit, I believe, of both our peoples. Therefore, I welcome you once again to Greece.”

The U.S. Secretary of the Interior thanked the Greek Prime Minister on behalf of Donald Trump and the American government. He said that he considers Greece a strategic partner, adding that the relations between the two countries can grow and expand, especially in the field of energy and energy security. The Trump administration has specific goals related to energy, and one of them is energy self-sufficiency – selling energy to friends and allies so that they don’t have to buy from our adversaries. The North-South corridor, Greece’s role with its long history in shipping, its access to the sea, and the pipeline system that extends north from here – all these create many opportunities for Greek companies and for Greece itself to contribute to energy security in Eastern and Southeastern Europe.

As he said the United States is fully committed to replacing Russian gas with American gas.

According to government sources, during the meeting the excellent level of Greek-American relations was reaffirmed, while the strengthening of cooperation in the energy sector was discussed.

The Prime Minister emphasised the strategic character of Greek-American relations and of Greece-U.S. defence and energy cooperation. Mitsotakis underlined that Greece, through the initiatives it has undertaken and the infrastructure it is developing, is becoming an energy hub in the Eastern Mediterranean and Southeastern Europe – an exporter of energy and a provider of energy security for the entire region.

The premier highlighted the strategic importance of interconnections, both electrical and digital, making special reference to the Great Sea Interconnector and the GREGY Interconnector projects. He also briefed Burgum on the importance of a corridor linking Alexandroupolis with Odesa, following up on a proposal he had put forward during his visit to Odesa in June. The role of the Greek shipping industry in LNG transport was also discussed during the meeting.

source: amna.gr