Sun. Mitsotakis: Greece is making a dynamic comeback in Southeastern Europe

Today's Summit, in the framework of the South East Europe Cooperation Process (SEECP), is the restart, at a more intensive pace, of the effort to «anchor» the Western Balkan countries in the safe harbour of Europe, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said, speaking to Thessaloniki's fm100 radio station, noting that «Greece is dynamically returning to South Eastern Europe».

Mitsotakis said that it was his choice to hold the Summit in Thessaloniki and that he has the pleasure and honour to be attended by the President of the European Council, Charles Michel, and the German Chancellor, Olaf Scholz, whom he personally invited to attend.

«In this way, we want to signal the great importance we attach, especially to the countries of the Western Balkans, and to try to restart, at a more intensive pace, the effort to anchor these countries in the safe harbour of Europe«, he added.

«It will be an opportunity to discuss the challenges for our wider region as a whole, to look at the best ways to deal with the economic consequences of the war in Ukraine,» the Prime Minister said.

He said that he will also have the opportunity to inform his counterparts about Turkish provocativeness, as it has manifested itself in recent weeks, but he noted that «in no way is this summit primarily about Turkey».

«Our focus is on Southeast Europe and the leading role that Greece, Northern Greece and especially Thessaloniki can play as a gateway for products, for energy. Greece is coming back, dynamically in Southeastern Europe, the Balkans and, of course, the protagonists in this great effort will be the companies of Northern Greece.».

Regarding the projects in Thessaloniki, Mitsotakis stressed that the residents of the city «know very well that this government has bent down with method and efficiency and is completing a series of important infrastructure projects in Northern Greece».

On the delivery of the «orphan kilometer» in Potidea Halkidiki, which took place a few days ago, he noted that it was a small project, but painful for the people of Thessaloniki who suffered in a traffic jam every summer on the route to the first leg of Halkidiki and vice versa. From this year, however, they are spared this inconvenience.

As he said, the government has dealt with a number of pending issues of the past, in infrastructure works, with method and determination.

For the metro, he said that it is feasible to be delivered by the end of 2023 and pointed out that at Venizelos station the antiquities will be repositioned in such a way that these monuments can be visited.

Regarding the new PAOK stadium and the redevelopment of the Toumba area, the Prime Minister said: «We now have in our hands the normative and regulatory framework in order for PAOK to finally acquire a state-of-the-art new stadium, but at the same time to proceed with a significant redevelopment of the area around the new Toumba stadium.

From now on - and in consultation with PAOK's management - we have the ability to move forward quickly with the projects, to complete the licensing processes. And we are absolutely certain that now the management will respond and, as it has committed to the PAOK fans, PAOK will get the stadium it truly deserves. I am personally very satisfied with this development. I think it is very important to upgrade our football product to be able to have modern infrastructure and PAOK is such a great team, such a historic team, that deserves to have the best possible stadium and this opportunity is now given through the Presidential Decree».

On the issue of university police, the Prime Minister said the government will not take «a single step back». He said that it would be installed in universities in the summer and that the vast majority of society on the dilemma of «library or sledgehammer» sided with the obvious and with the government's view on university police.

Finally, Mitsotakis stressed that the elections are coming to the end of the four-year term and when asked whether the Thessaloniki International Fair in September will be pre-election, he replied that it will be pre-election in the sense that it will be the last one before the national elections.