Tag : Greece

Washington: US President Joe Biden on Monday thanked Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis for his country's moral leadership in the aftermath of Russia's invasion of Ukraine as the two held talks at the White House on Monday about the ongoing conflict. Mitsotakis was in Washington to mark a COVID-delayed commemoration of the bicentennial of the start of the Greek War of Independence, a more than eight-year-long struggle that led to the ouster of the Ottoman Empire. He will deliver an address to a joint session of Congress on Tuesday. But the celebratory moment was shadowed by the most significant fighting on the continent since World War II, and as Biden seeks to keep the West unified as it pressures Russia to end the war. Biden praised Greece for showing moral clarity by quickly imposing sanctions against Russia following the February 24 invasion, providing Kyiv with military assistance and taking in Ukrainian refugees fleeing the conflict. We're helping Ukrainians say no to Russian aggression," Biden said. "And we're saying no to tyranny, to the idea that autocracies will outpace democracies in the 21st century, because that's what is at stake here in my view. As Europe looks to wean itself off Russian energy, Mitsotakis has pushed the idea of Greece becoming an energy hub that can bring gas, as well as renewable energies, produced in southwest Asia, the Middle East and Africa to eastern Europe. "Greece plans to play an important role as a gateway for electricity produced from cheap, renewable sources," Mitsotakis said. A new Greece-to-Bulgaria pipeline built during the COVID-19 pandemic, tested and due to start commercial operation in June is slated to bring large volumes of gas flow between the two countries in both directio ...