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A day after a hotly contested election, Turkish President Erdogan is in the lead, defying the polls to enter an expected run-off for the presidency at the end of May, a contest where Erdogan now appears to be the clear favorite. Ayla Jean Yackley, a journalist covering Turkey with stories in The Financial Times, Politico, and other major outlets, joins Thanos Davelis to break down the key...

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President Nikos Christodoulides visited Israel this week where he met with President Isaac Herzog and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The visit follows key trips to Greece, Egypt and France, and came despite the recent unrest affecting Israelis and Palestinians, underlining the importance of Cyprus’s ties with Israel. Prof. Gabriel Haritos joins Thanos Davelis to discuss the significance of...

15 λεπτά

Greece’s party leaders held a debate on Wednesday, touching on everything from the economy to foreign policy. While the three hour debate didn’t produce a clear winner, it was an opportunity for the party leaders to speak directly to voters. In the meantime, polls are indicating that New Democracy has recovered some of its lost ground, raising questions about what kind of coalition could be in...

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Athens is currently on the radar for many looking to purchase real estate, but it has also emerged as a magnet for Israelis looking to escape a cost of living crisis at home, and more recently, Israel's political turmoil. The real estate boom is unique as it coincides with a strengthening of ties between Greece and Israel, underlining how deepening political relations are trickling down to...

11 λεπτά

With Turkish elections around the corner, the atmosphere in the country is becoming increasingly heated. President Erdogan and his coalition seem to be feeling the heat, and their rhetoric has become notably more intense in recent days as they double down on nationalism and culture wars issues. At the same time, the Sunday attack by government supporters on Istanbul opposition mayor Ekrem...

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As Turkey gears up for momentous elections on Sunday, President Erdogan and his government are expected to use several tactics to undermine the vote and try to engineer a win as this year’s election is shaping up as the fiercest in the country’s modern history. Despite this, the opposition remains united and optimistic. Merve Tahiroglu, the Turkey program director at the Project on Middle East...

15 λεπτά

A topic that has gained particular attention over the last years, as was highlighted at the Delphi Economic Forum at the end of April, is Greece’s effort to become a global education hub. Alexis Phylactopoulos, the President of College Year in Athens (CYA) - the oldest and largest study abroad institution in Greece - and of its Athens subsidiary, The International Center for Hellenic and...

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Once again, the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) has recommended in its 2023 Annual Report that Turkey be placed on the Special Watch List for engaging in or tolerating severe violations of religious freedom. Tugba Tanyeri Erdemir, the coordinator of ADL's Task Force on Middle East Minorities and a non-resident scholar at the Middle East Institute, joins...

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Since 2020, the EU has suffered two large shocks - the pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine - that have increased longer-term fiscal pressures through higher debt and higher public investment needs. As the EU looks to address these challenges, its members are locked in a debate over how to adapt its long-standing fiscal rules to the economic reality that has emerged. Germany is leading the...

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Last week at the Delphi Economic Forum we heard Greece’s main western partners - notably the US and Germany - hint that there will be a push to resolve long-standing Greek-Turkish disputes after the upcoming elections. At the same time, the Forum looked at the dynamic shifts taking place in the Eastern Mediterranean, most notably the 3+1 partnership between Greece, Israel, Cyprus, and the US....

14 λεπτά

At the beginning of 2023 Bulgaria gained access to Turkey’s terminals and gas transmission network under a long-term deal that would help the country replace supplies once provided by Russia. This had come to a surprise to some in Athens, as Greece and Bulgaria have accelerated their energy cooperation through projects like the IGB natural gas pipeline and the FSRU in Alexandroupolis. It...

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It looks like the US is sending a clear message on the importance of maintaining Greece’s qualitative military edge with moves that will get the ball rolling on Greece’s acquisition of both C-130 aircraft and F-35 jets. In another development that is expected to be announced soon, Kathimeirni reports Greece will receive an additional package of financial assistance from the US government for...

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It wasn’t too long ago that Greece seemed to be going from crisis to crisis, with Grexit being thrown around as a real possibility. Today, we’re seeing Greece described as a European success story. Peter Spiegel, the US managing editor of the Financial Times, joins Thanos Davelis to discuss Greece’s transformation from the depths of the financial crisis to today. We look at the importance of...

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With election season in full swing, Greece’s politicians are trying to engage with a group of voters that may not have received their full attention in the past: young voters. We’ve seen political leaders take to TikTok, speak to YouTubers, and create content targeting this specific bloc of voters. Given this emphasis on winning the youth vote, Nikos Efstathiou, the deputy editor in chief at...

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The campaign for Greece’s May 21 national election officially kicked off on Saturday with the dissolution of parliament, and political parties, which have already been making their pitch to the Greek people, are now in full campaign mode. At the same time, observers are watching to see how developments on Greece’s far-right in the last few days will impact the political scene. Tom Ellis, the...

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April 24th marks the anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. This year, commemorations take on a new meaning as Armenians continue to face hostility as Azerbaijan, backed by Turkey, continues its monthslong blockade of the only route into Artsakh, the Armenian-governed enclave in Nagorno-Karabakh, cutting off food, water, and gas. Aram Hamparian, the Executive Director of the Armenian National...

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EU lawmakers on Thursday gave the green light to a series of proposals aimed at finally ending years of standoff over how to manage migration, an issue that has provoked one of the bloc’s biggest political crises. The move comes amid a spike in both legal and illegal migration across Europe. The question now is whether EU countries can finally reform their creaking asylum system before...

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On Wednesday the Supreme Court ruled that the Turkish state-owned Halkbank remains subject to criminal prosecution in US courts for fraud, money laundering, and sanctions offenses related to the bank’s alleged participation “in a multibillion-dollar scheme to evade US sanctions on Iran.” The case has strained US-Turkish relations. Jonathan Schanzer, the Foundation for Defense of Democracies’...

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About a week ago the US imposed sanctions on Turkish entities it said violated US export controls and helped Russia's war effort. This is part of ongoing efforts to “cut off more of the international assets and finance channels still connecting Moscow’s economy to global trade and finance.” Expert Sinan Ciddi joins Thanos Davelis to look into why this move is significant, and break down how the...

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On Monday the Biden's administration notified Congress of the planned sale to Turkey of avionics software upgrades for its current fleet of F-16 fighter aircraft, a deal valued at up to $259 million. The deal, which would mark the first military equipment sale to Turkey in years, moved ahead after leaders of U.S. congressional committees gave informal approval. Petros Kasfikis, the Washington...

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