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The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom published an in-depth report this week examining threats to religious properties in Turkey, including places of worship, religious institutions, and cemeteries. This research looks at various threats and attacks over the last two decades and documents whether assailants were brought to justice. It also investigates the role of...

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The Turkish parliament's foreign affairs commission delayed a vote on Sweden's NATO membership bid on Thursday in a further setback to the Nordic country's hopes of joining the Western alliance after 18 months of delays that have left NATO allies frustrated. The move comes as Turkey’s President Erdogan prepares to visit Germany, has openly aired his desire to be hosted by Biden in Washington,...

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On Tuesday Prime Minister Mitsotakis highlighted to German Chanellor Olaf Scholz that Greece has the fastest rate of debt reduction in the world. From around 206% of GDP in 2020, Greek debt is expected to decline this year to around 160% of GDP, and this downward trajectory is expected to continue throughout the decade. Yannis Palaiologos, a journalist at large with Kathimerini and the author...

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Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis was just in Germany, where he met with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz. Migration, Turkey, energy issues, and the Middle East dominated the discussion, while the economy, once the top issue dominating relations between Athens and Berlin, took a backseat, reflecting Greece’s significant progress from the dire financial crisis of the previous decade. Vassilis...

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Following several weeks of tensions, a left-wing faction within SYRIZA, Greece’s main opposition, announced on Sunday that it was peeling off, accusing newly elected leader Stefanos Kasselakis of “Trumpian practices” and abandoning the party’s core left wing ideology for a sort of “right-wing populism.” Nektaria Stamouli, an Athens based journalist and Politico’s Eastern Mediterranean...

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The Cypriot plan to supply Gaza with humanitarian aid, presented by President Nikos Christodoulides at the Paris Peace Forum this week, is gaining traction, particularly among EU member states. The planned sea corridor, in which Cyprus seeks a central role, was also the main issue discussed by Cypriot Foreign Minister Constantinos Kombos on his recent trip to Amman and Ramallah, while President...

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Egypt has been coming under “conflicting pressures” as the war in Gaza unfolds, both from Israel, the US, the EU, Hamas, and its public, all while looking at a potential economic crisis at home, leading to a difficult balancing act for Egypt. Despite these pressures, Egypt’s role in this conflict has become increasingly pivotal for the US. The recent visit by CIA Director William Burns to Egypt...

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Since Stefanos Kasselakis was elected as the new leader of Syriza, the party has been riven with internal strife and tensions. Key party members have either announced their departure from the party or been pushed out, while members of the “Umbrella” faction, which represents the left-wing opposition within the party and include figures like former finance minister Euclid Tsakalotos, are...

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Turkey’s main opposition party ousted its longtime leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu this weekend following his comprehensive loss in the presidential elections earlier this year. Members of the Republican People’s party (CHP) voted on Sunday to replace Kılıçdaroğlu with Özgür Özel, who has called for reform both in how the party is managed and how it approaches the upcoming elections, vowing to take...

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On Monday Scott Nathan, the CEO of the US International Development Finance Corporation, or the DFC, signed a financing agreement for a $125 million loan to ONEX Elefsis Shipyards and Industries to rehabilitate and modernize the Elefsina shipyard near Athens. The investment will develop the Elefsina shipyard, which is strategically located near several key gas trade routes, into a maritime and...

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The wars in Ukraine and in the Middle East have highlighted not only Greece’s role, but specifically the important role the naval base at Souda Bay - often described as the “crown jewel” of US-Greece military cooperation - plays in the Eastern Mediterranean. As Souda Bay takes center stage amid this regional instability, Steven Tagle joins Thanos Davelis to look at how the oldest US military...

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The Athenian coastline - known as the Athens Riviera - is quickly emerging as a real estate hotspot, attracting both high end Greek and foreign investors, digital nomads, and tourists. A recent special report in Kathimerini has even called it the “El Dorado” of real estate as the area - despite having some of the most expensive real estate prices in Greece - remains an investment opportunity,...

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Turkey marked its 100th year as a republic on October 29th, and Turks have been debating the country's evolution and how it measures up to the vision of the deeply secular Kemal Ataturk. While celebrations focused on the previous 100 years, it is also clear that President Erdogan’s ambition is to usher in another century forged more in his own image. Ryan Gingeras, a professor in the Department...

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European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen vowed to bring the economies of the Western Balkans and the European Union 'closer' on Monday as she began a four-day tour of the region. Her plan includes a €6 billion investment package, to be delivered on condition the countries make reforms to open up their economies, overcome their conflicts and modernize their administrations. Professor James...

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With the war in Ukraine on one side, and the outbreak of war in the Middle East on the other, Greece has become a strategic hub, and is practically the only reliable US partner in a region that is in constant turmoil. Whether it’s the port of Alexandroupolis in northern Greece, or Souda Bay in the south, Greece’s geopolitical value is becoming more and more tangible. At the same time, as Greece...

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Today we’re heading to Washington, DC, where we’ve seen a number of key developments throughout the week, from the relaunch of the Congressional Hellenic Israel Alliance Caucus to US lawmakers demanding that the State Department use all tools available to the US to hold the Turkish government accountable for supporting the operations of the terror group Hamas. Endy Zemenides and Sinan Ciddi...

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Last week Standard & Poor’s became the first among the “big three” rating agencies to upgrade Greece to investment grade since the country’s debt crisis. Securing investment grade has been a key target for the Mitsotakis government, and the upgrade was hailed as "a great achievement and a game changer" for Greece. A few days later, in another vote of confidence in Greece, Italy’s UniCredit...

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This year the Biden Administration launched the American Climate Corps, with the ambitious goal of putting more than 20,000 young people on career pathways in the fields of clean energy, conservation and climate resilience. At the same time, a group of Greeks, inspired by the AmeriCorps model of civil service, have embarked on a mission to become Greece’s national climate corps. The...

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On Monday Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis traveled to Israel, where he met with Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and made it clear that he was there “not only as an ally, but as a true friend,” stressing that the Hamas attack on October 7th was “truly horrific.” This visit came on the heels of the Cairo Peace Summit on the Palestinian issue, where Mitsotakis reiterated the need for...

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From Egypt to Brussels, governments are feeling the impact of the war in Gaza following the Hamas terror attacks against Israel on October 7th. While we saw Turkey try to take on a mediating role early on, it has shifted to openly criticizing both Israel and the US, leading many to wonder if President Erdogan is making a U-turn on efforts to mend relations with Israel. At the same time,...

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