Greece’s Minister of Environment and Energy, Stavros Papastayrou, participated yesterday in the Atlantic Council proceedings in New York, focusing on energy security in Central and Eastern Europe. During his speech, Minister Papastayrou emphasized that energy security equals national security, a point also highlighted by U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright in his intervention. Papastayrou noted that “the flow of American LNG to Greece is steadily increasing, while dependence on Russian gas continues to decline. 81% of Greek LNG imports in the first half of 2025 came from the United States. In volume terms, this was almost double compared to the first half of 2024”.
Meanwhile, the Environment and Energy Minister emphasized that “Greece will continue to serve as a reliable hub for channeling American energy to Europe, a pillar of stability and prosperity for our region, and a steadfast friend of the United States”. Within the Atlantic Council framework, Papastayrou participated in a panel that also included European Commission Director-General for Energy Ditte Juul Jørgensen, Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna, Ukraine’s Minister of Economy, Environment and Agriculture Oleksii Sobolev, Bulgarian Energy Minister Zhecho Stankov, Romanian Energy Minister Bogdan Gruia Ivan, Polish Deputy Minister in the Chancellery Karol Kazimierz Rabenda, and Czech Deputy Foreign Minister Jiri Kozak.
On the sidelines of the Council, Papastayrou held a bilateral meeting with U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright. Their discussion centered on strategic issues regarding the strengthening of Greece-U.S. energy cooperation, as well as the operation of the Vertical Corridor and disconnection from Russian gas as a strategic priority. These are thematic areas that both Ministers agreed to include on the agenda of the Partnership for Transatlantic Energy Cooperation (P-TEC) to be held in Athens on November 6-7, with the participation of the U.S. Energy Secretary. Papastayrou pointed out to the U.S. Energy Secretary that through Revythousa and Alexandroupolis (FSRU), Greece’s LNG entry points connected to the Greece-Bulgaria Interconnector and the Vertical Corridor, the region’s energy security is being strengthened.
Papastayrou: Infrastructure channels American LNG not only to Southeast Europe, but all the way to Moldova and Ukraine
“Thus, we substantially contribute to the transformation and development of the region. The infrastructure channels American LNG not only to Southeast Europe, but all the way to Moldova and Ukraine, offering stability and prospects in an unstable international environment,” he characteristically noted.
Additionally, the development of Greece’s hydrocarbon sector was discussed, along with the next steps until the international tender is awarded to the Chevron-Helleniq Energy consortium, while they agreed on the need to accelerate and strengthen the 3+1 initiative, to whose agenda Artificial Intelligence (AI) issues will be added. Finally, the Greek Environment and Energy Minister held bilateral meetings with his Romanian and Bulgarian counterparts, Bogdan Gruia Ivan and Zhecho Stankov respectively. It is noted that Papastayrou will meet today with the U.S. President’s Advisor and Director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, Michael Kratsios.
