The meeting of the US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, with his Greek counterpart, Nikos Dendias, whom the head of the State Department called “my friend”, took place in a warm atmosphere.

In the dialogue they had in front of the cameras before the start of the fourth round of the US-Greece strategic dialogue, Nikos Dendias welcomed Antony Blinken to Athens, pointing out that since their previous meeting “we experienced Russia’s invasion of Ukraine”.

“The event, amidst all these developments, showed that the cooperation between Greece and the US has become closer” emphasized Mr. Dendias, who added that “US-Greece cooperation strengthens regional security and stability”.

At the same time, the Greek Foreign Minister noted that security, defence, humanitarian, and environmental challenges, as well as regional issues, will be on the agenda of the meeting, which is scheduled to take place after the dinner that Mitsotakis-Blinken had on Monday night.

“There are still many new events that have taken place since our last meeting. The participation of Alexandroupolis in the natural gas pipeline was very important” noted Mr. Dendias.

“Niko, my friend, thank you very much” the head of the State Department began his statement, expressing his joy at being in Athens to start the fourth strategic dialogue.

“This dialogue reflects the depth of our relationship over 20 years. Today’s discussions will continue where we left off in the last dialogue, in 2021,” said Mr. Blinken.

During the joint Press conference, Nikos Dendias spoke of a solid basis for the bilateral relations between Greece and the US based on “values ​​such as democracy, adherence to international law and adherence to the principles of the UN Charter”, making special reference to the role of expatriates. As he said, “the US ambassador, George Tsounis, is a brilliant example of expatriation”.

The Greek Minister of Foreign Affairs described the Russian invasion of Ukraine as a “dark example” and emphasised that “Greek foreign policy is based on the full application of the rules of international law and the law of the sea, on respect for the principles of the UN Charter and the condemnation of threat or use of force”.

He recalled that “from the first moment we offered help to Ukraine within the framework of the EU and the UN” while also alluding to his visit to Turkey where, as he said, they agreed with his counterpart, Mevlut Cavusoglu, that they should not we are waiting for another natural disaster to work together.

Antony Blinken also referred to the Greek-Turkey relations and said that “Greece and Turkey are our partners and friends and we continue to discuss and cooperate with them through NATO for security in the region to avoid threats that increase tension and this is more difficult in a pre-election period. Look at the region as a whole and what Greece is doing to become a power center and connect Africa to Europe and bring countries together for cooperation. When differences are resolved, greater opportunities open up. It is very important that friends and partners manage their differences diplomatically.”