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This week Albanian authorities finally moved to refer Fredi Beleri’s case to trial. The ethnic Greek elected mayor of Himare has been in pre-trial detention for months, and as a result has been unable to take the oath of office. His case has now become central to Greek-Albanian relations, with implications for other issues in the relationship - from efforts to resolve maritime disputes at the...

13 λεπτά

On March 11, 2023, the night before municipal elections in Albania, the then candidate for mayor of Himare, the ethnic Greek Fredi Beleri, and his aide, Pantelis Kokavesis, were arrested by the police for allegedly attempting to buy votes. Months later, and while he has already been elected mayor, Beleri remains in pre-trial detention. Greece has monitored this case closely, stressing to...

8 λεπτά

Climate change is exacerbating weather extremes, making heat waves more frequent and more severe worldwide, and this summer has been the hottest on record. Heat waves are also causing yet another devastating wildfire season, and with data showing that the Eastern Mediterranean is warming twice as fast as the rest of the world, this is a particularly acute problem for countries like Greece....

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It’s now been a couple of weeks since the NATO summit in Vilnius, where Turkey’s Erdogan was praised by other leaders - including President Biden - for lifting his objections to Sweden’s NATO membership bid. Once again, F-16 sales to Turkey were a top-of-the-agenda item ahead of Vilnius. Since the summit, while there have been countless headlines declaring “deals” and discussing details of...

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Earlier this week Greece celebrated 49 years since the restoration of democracy after seven years of military dictatorship. With the return of democracy, Greece began a new period of stability, one anchored in the West. This was evident a few years later when Greece joined the European Union. Since then, Greece has proven its democratic resilience time and again, especially in the midst of the...

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Following the meeting between Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Turkish President Erdogan at the NATO summit, we’ve heard Mitsotakis talk of a new “bold agenda” in Greek-Turkish relations. As the Greek prime minister laid out, this agenda could include going to the International Court of Justice at the Hague to resolve the key disputes in the Aegean. Expert Constantinos Filis, the...

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As Greece faces a prolonged heatwave and battles wildfires across the country, the realities of rising temperatures and climate change have long been evident and are impacting every aspect of life. Steven Tagle joins Thanos Davelis to look at how climate change is impacting local communities in Greece, specifically the mastic producers on the Aegean island of Chios, who have been battered by...

11 λεπτά

Wildfires have continued to rage across Greece, with Prime Minister Mitsotakis saying on Monday that the country is “fighting a war” against the fires. Greece’s fire service capabilities have been stretched as new fires emerge amid a sweltering heatwave. In Rhodes, where a wildfire has cut across the island, the government and locals have mounted the largest ever island evacuation to move close...

10 λεπτά

This month Turkey’s President Erdogan finally ended his opposition to Sweden’s NATO membership bid after months of brinkmanship and threats, while this week saw him travel to the oil-rich Gulf in a bid to attract investment and bolster his country’s ailing economy. Prof. Henri Barkey, the Cohen Professor of International Relations at Lehigh University and Adjunct Senior Fellow for Middle East...

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Firefighting aircraft and ground crews from other countries headed to Greece on Thursday to help battle wildfires that have intensified as southern Europe faces a prolonged heat wave. While firefighters have contained some of the wildfires near Athens, officials are on alert, warning that “the worst is yet to come,” as Southern Europe’s second heat wave in as many weeks brings extreme...

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July 20th marks another black anniversary of Turkey’s invasion of Cyprus in 1974. 49 years later, the northern part of Cyprus remains illegally occupied. President Christodoulides recently expressed cautious optimism about efforts to resume talks, however, and Turkey’s desire to re-engage with the EU - as President Erdogan suggested at the NATO summit - puts the focus back on Cyprus. Endy...

13 λεπτά

On Monday Russia pulled out of an agreement that had allowed Ukraine to export its grain by sea despite a wartime blockade, a deal seen as essential to keeping food flowing from Ukraine — a major breadbasket — to the wider world. Expert Max Bergmann joins Thanos Davelis to break down why Russia has decided to terminate this agreement, what’s at stake if the deal isn’t renewed, and whether...

15 λεπτά

Last week, a day after meeting with Turkish President Erdogan at the NATO summit, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis announced the promotion of a “bold agenda” in Greek-Turkish relations with the ultimate aim of bringing the issue of the delimitation of the continental shelf and the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) to the International Court of Justice in The Hague. Vassilis Nedos, Kathimerini’s...

11 λεπτά

President Erdogan’s recent “U-turn” on Sweden’s accession to NATO has led to a number of observers wondering whether Turkey may be pivoting away from Russia and returning to the West, with some asking how long Erdogan’s special relationship with Putin can last. Amberin Zaman, a senior correspondent reporting from the Middle East, North Africa and Europe exclusively for Al-Monitor, joins Thanos...

14 λεπτά

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg announced that a deal had been reached with Turkey’s President Erdogan in order to lift his veto on Sweden’s NATO accession. While the announcement was followed by celebrations, Sweden still needs Turkey’s parliament to approve its membership - which could take months. It looks like Turkey also now anticipates the lifting of most defense-related...

14 λεπτά

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Turkish President Erdogan agreed to resume talks and confidence-building measures as they hailed a new “positive climate” following their meeting on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Vilnius. Despite the latest announcements and the recent shift in tone from Ankara, fundamental differences remain. Professor Kostas Ifantis joins Thanos Davelis to discuss...

10 λεπτά

Greece is currently bracing for its first major and prolonged heatwave of the summer, with temperatures over the next few days expected to reach and exceed 40 degrees Celsius. The country’s health, labor and citizens’ protection ministries issued emergency warnings on Monday to citizens, while the City of Athens is also taking action to deal with the phenomenon. Elissavet Bargianni, the Head of...

14 λεπτά

On the eve of the NATO summit in Vilnius it appears that Turkish President Erdogan is once again moving the goalposts when it comes to Sweden’s NATO membership bid, attempting to put progress on Turkey’s EU membership on the table as well. At the same time, President Biden and Erdogan also discussed the potential sale of US F-16 fighter jets to Turkey, and with Ankara introducing new demands at...

14 λεπτά

With the NATO Summit at Vilnius around the corner, everyone’s attention is on Turkey and whether it will lift its veto over Sweden’s NATO membership bid. This is also putting the focus on Turkey’s request to purchase F-16 jets from the US. Endy Zemenides, HALC’s Executive Director, joins Thanos Davelis to break down how NATO allies have given Turkey too much leverage when it comes to Sweden’s...

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This week Prime Minister Mitsotakis presented his new government’s vision for Greece over the next few years, pledging to step up the pace of reforms in order to take Greece to the next level. Some of the key steps he outlined include debt reduction, bringing incomes for Greeks significantly closer to European levels, promising to crack down on tax evasion and to reform the country's health...

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