The wounds left behind by the recent severe weather, the EU Summit and Greek-Turkish relations were discussed by Deputy Minister to the Prime Minister and Government Spokesperson Pavlos Marinakis in his interview on the “Syndeseis” program of ERTnews. Among other things, Mr. Marinakis mentioned that six major protection projects are currently underway in the Attica Region with a specific timeline, aimed at protecting citizens from extreme weather events. Meanwhile, regarding the meeting between Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Mr. Marinakis emphasized that discussions are at a “very advanced stage” and the date for the next High-Level Cooperation Council between the two countries is expected to be set within the coming days.
Initially, regarding infrastructure and state preparedness for dealing with severe weather phenomena, Mr. Marinakis highlighted that within 6.5 years the country has developed a civil protection system that now responds exemplarily to unprecedented conditions. As he emphasized, this doesn’t mean there won’t be more difficult days or tragic incidents, like the recent loss of two fellow citizens. “The discussion has two basic extensions regarding infrastructure and the state mechanism’s response. In the third discussion, given that the enemy of good is always better and given that we’re talking about a country where until 2019 the concept of civil protection existed just to exist… This has been transformed within 6.5 years into a state that has, I believe, an exemplary response to unprecedented conditions. This doesn’t mean there won’t be much more difficult days. This doesn’t mean there won’t be others where we have tragic news, like the day before yesterday, where two of our fellow citizens were lost,” he said.
Marinakis: Six major protection projects underway in Attica Region – “Race against time” from ministries
The government spokesperson emphasized that the country now has predictability and the ability to inform the public early through evacuation plans and notifications, something that didn’t exist in previous decades. At the same time, he mentioned that six major protection projects are underway in the Attica Region with a specific timeline, and that the relevant ministries are in a “race against time” to complete them.
However, he noted that he believes the source of the biggest problems is illegal construction. “I believe that many times by many journalists and political parties and people who have public discourse, the public discussion happens with too many elements of hypocrisy. We can’t fall from the clouds when for entire decades Greece built with everyone’s responsibility. Some mayors contributed to this, urban planning contributed to this, and many relevant ministers over time turned a blind eye,” he noted.
Regarding property regularization, Mr. Marinakis noted that “there are categories and categories. I believe that cases touching on safety and infrastructure issues should not include the concept of extension. Cases that might have been outside some plan or don’t threaten such discussions as those we’re having are of a different magnitude, and being able to give our fellow citizens an opportunity to regularize their property and have this bring revenue to the state and essentially have an overall situation that is correct, yes.”
“Greece is in the heart and soul of Europe”
Referring to the EU Summit and the Prime Minister’s statements, Mr. Marinakis noted that Greece is in the heart and soul of Europe.
“First and above all, we are a European state, a sovereign state that at the end of the day will never put issues of international law on the scale. This is a given. From there on, our strategic relationship with the United States of America is also given, in which this government especially wants to invest and deepen,” Mr. Marinakis emphasized.
He added that “on this issue, I believe that yesterday we saw once again how important it is for the country’s Prime Minister to have both knowledge and will and to try to compose. Because a discussion is happening, we’ll continue it regarding aspiring politicians etc. Foreign policy is perhaps the most serious field that shows us that all this happening is a very serious exercise and not a game.”
Mr. Marinakis emphasized that there are two basic issues the Prime Minister mentioned yesterday in Brussels: one is Greenland and the other is the Peace Council.
“Regarding Greenland, he highlighted the fact that nothing can happen in ignorance and under any sense of violation of the sovereign state of the Kingdom of Denmark, because Greenland is European territory, territory of the Kingdom of Denmark. Period,” he said.
“From there on, the broader concerns of the United States of America about the Arctic Circle and everything that is ultimately expressed have a basis, but must be discussed without putting international law and the sovereignty of a sovereign state under negotiation in any case,” he added. He emphasized that this position is vindicated by the latest statements from the American president.
Regarding the Peace Council, Mr. Marinakis said “regarding the Peace Council, the major concern of the 13 states that had been invited – 13 European states including Greece – is for the discussion to be only about peace in Gaza, and I believe that the proposal submitted by Kyriakos Mitsotakis to make it a condition for these states’ participation, the discussion only about Gaza, can solve this difficult exercise and move forward, so that these countries can also participate in this very serious discussion about Gaza.”
“Talks for Erdogan-Mitsotakis meeting are very advanced” – No possibility of Trump mediation in Greek-Turkish relations
Regarding a possibility of Donald Trump’s mediation in Greek-Turkish relations, Mr. Marinakis said that “this cannot happen even as a discussion, not even as a theory. We are still a government, like those before us, that with Turkey we understand that only one difference separates us: the delimitation of EEZ and continental shelf without ever putting sovereignty issues, sovereign rights based on international law on the scale. When at this point, I don’t know when that will be, then we will submit this position, which is also the permanent, timeless, non-negotiable Greek position.”
Regarding whether there will be a Mitsotakis-Erdogan meeting, the Government Spokesperson noted that it will happen “of course it will happen. The talks are, I believe, very advanced. It’s a matter of a few days, the announcement of the exact date when the next meeting and the next High-Level Cooperation Council between the two countries will take place.”
