In Greece, regardless matter which party is in office, national priorities are regularly executed.
Greece has strong diplomacy and performs admirably in international affairs. Diplomacy should not be confused with one-day politicians.
Since 1993, Athens has repeatedly sought to prevent the Corridor No. 8 project and the installation of vertical infrastructure along the North-South axis from being implemented.
In an interview with BGNES, Stefan Stoyanov, former Bulgarian ambassador to Greece from 2002 to 2006 and deputy in the VII Supreme Court (1990-1991), declared this.
Ambassador Stoyanov and I discuss current Bulgarian-Greek ties, important infrastructure projects between the two countries, and Greece's role in the Balkans under Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis' New Democracy administration. According to Ambassador Stoyanov, Bulgaria contributes significantly to the accomplishment of Greece's national goals in specific areas. As an example, he cites a 1993 report from the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs that he is directly aware of.
"In this reference, one can see how Greek diplomats note that what we call Corridor No. 8 today is not in Greece's favor, its construction should not be supported, on the contrary, ways should be found to postpone it in time and possibly is not being realized and that every effort should be made for the so-called vertical infrastructure, i.e. the North-South transport arteries," the diplomat went on to say. He reminded us that the vertical infrastructure - the North-South routes - was mentioned in the announcement on the occasion of our Prime Minister Academician Nikolay Denkov's visit to Greece on January 4, 2024.
On this occasion, the subject of whether Bulgaria is a subcontractor of Greece was raised, and Ambassador Stoyanov said, "Bulgaria is a subcontractor in some areas, as we have common interests." We also have mutual interests in the development of vertical infrastructure, but Corridor No. 8 must be created and something is done there," the diplomat stated emphatically.
He remembered that from 1994 to 2009, Athens constructed the "Egnatia-Odos" transit corridor, which stretches through Northern Greece from the Adriatic coast to the Turkish border. It has nine vertical North-South routes connecting it to Bulgaria, RS Macedonia, and Albania.
"The Greeks want trade to pass through there, to revitalize the port of Thessaloniki, which was vital for trade on the Balkan Peninsula throughout the nineteenth century." With the absence of borders as a result of the EU and Schengen, Thessaloniki has every opportunity to become a major economic player. Greece's ambition is to be able to travel from Thessaloniki to Lom, and then along the Danube to Central and Western Europe - Austria, Germany, and so on. This is the Greek dream, but what we will do is our business," Ambassador Stoyanov said.
According to the ambassador, Greece has a persistent agenda of increasing its influence in the Balkans, both economically and politically.
"There were significant Greek investments in Bulgaria, which were fully supported by the Greek government." They had strong political backing and were not just the consequence of a free market economy - someone determined that Bulgaria has low taxes and hence invested here. No, investments in Bulgaria were done with state finances, with official support, and with particular actions and choices. "Greece's policy, economy, and vision for the future are quite consistent and quite well implemented," said Ambassador Stoyanov, adding, "Greece's policy, economy, and vision for the future are quite consistent and quite well implemented."
Diplomacy benefits both the state and business. "Regardless of who is in power in Greece, Greek diplomacy operates autonomously on national priorities." "There is no interference of topical issues from domestic political life in these matters," stated Ambassador Stoyanov.
He provided a specific example of Greek-Serbian ties. Even though Serbia is not a member of the European Union or NATO, Belgrade maintains close ties with Athens. Greece, for its side, backs Serbia on several political matters, such as the refusal to recognize Kosovo's independence. "In relations with Serbia, this is presented as support for Serbian policy, but before other partners, Greece presents that the non-recognition of Kosovo is related to Northern Cyprus," Stoyanov, the ambassador to Serbia, stated.
He is sure that we must learn in Bulgaria that "diplomacy is not something that politicians should get involved in." Don't try international policy if you're a fledgling politician with an opinion. It is a conservative place where things change throughout two, three, or more generations. As a result, policymakers should exercise caution," Ambassador Stoyanov advises.
Under the leadership of Kyriakos Mitsotakis, Greece plays a strategic role in US policy in the Balkans and the Eastern Mediterranean. Just two days after the visit of Acad. Denkov's visit to Greece at the end of last week, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken also visited. Ambassador Stoyanov draws attention to the signs in this visit. The US Secretary of State was received by the Greek Prime Minister not at the official residence Villa Maximos in Athens, but at Mitsotakis' home on the island of Crete, which is not far from Souda, where one of the largest US military bases is located. The enormous trust between Washington and Athens is evidenced by the fact that Greece is the first country in the region to get the 5th generation F-35 fighter jets - the deal has already received the green light from the US Congress. The other Balkan allies will get fourth-generation F-16 fighters. Also noteworthy is the manner in which Athens will acquire the fighters, the purchase will be assisted by the US side.
Greece has a strong political elite and indeed the country is proving it in the recent days. On the day of the visit of Acad. Denkov in Greece, three new ministers were sworn in, among them Michalis Chrisochoidis, who was initially interior minister under the fierce opponent of the now ruling New Democracy - the socialist PASOK party. In 2002, he succeeded in dismantling the terrorist organisation 17 November, which for 27 years murdered American and British diplomats, industrialists and right-wing politicians. "This is a testimony that in Greece politicians are not escaping responsibility. When a certain person has been in politics for 20-30-40 years as in Greece, then you know who bears responsibility, who has done the good things and who has done the bad things," Ambassador Stefan Stoyanov emphasised. / BGNES
