PM Mitsotakis on ‘hard truths’ for Israel and Greece's economic comeback
Power Play
POLITICO
4.2 • 1K Ratings
🗓️ 9 November 2023
⏱️ 38 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
One month after war broke out between Israel and Hamas, the solidarity of European leaders is being tested. Nowhere more so than in Greece, on the EU's southern border, which has traditional ties to Israel and Arab states.
On this week’s edition of Power Play, host Anne McElvoy speaks to Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on his concerns about the war in the Middle East, Greece's proximity to the region, and the prospect of increasing humanitarian aid via a sea corridor.
They also discuss Greece's economic revival, relations with Turkey, the challenges of dealing with migrant boat crossings and climate change.
Anne is then joined by POLITICO’s “Power Panel” to reflect on the interview. Jamie Dettmer is POLITICO Europe's opinion editor, and Matt Kaminski is POLITICO’s editor-at-large in Washington D.C.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Today's episode is presented by Nova Vax. |
| 0:02.8 | Nova Vax is a global leader in vaccine development and research. |
| 0:06.8 | The company is working to make safe and effective vaccines available |
| 0:10.4 | to help protect those who need them around the world. |
| 0:13.0 | NovaVax is also collaborating with leading organizations across the global vaccines landscape, |
| 0:18.0 | including research institutions, government agencies, foundations, and industry to help ensure access and increase uptake of vaccines worldwide. |
| 0:27.0 | Learn more at W. W. Novavax.com. There are massive evacuations in Greece. |
| 0:37.0 | Wildfires have forced thousands of tourists and residents to flee. |
| 0:41.0 | This summer produced weather of biblical proportions for many parts of Europe, but not |
| 0:46.3 | more so than Greece. A trail of devastation across Central Greece. This region was hit by the heaviest rainfall the country |
| 0:55.2 | has seen since records began. In the eye of the storm was Kiryakos Mitsotakis, the Greek |
| 1:01.2 | Prime Minister since since 2019. |
| 1:04.2 | Reelected by a landslide last June, the honeymoon to his second term came to an abrupt end |
| 1:10.0 | when he was confronted with multiple crises, including the worst wildfires and flooding in living history, |
| 1:16.0 | as well as a devastating train crash that shook the country and raised questions about the competence of those who run it. |
| 1:23.0 | Lots of people though think you can't blame one person for what's happened here and when they listen |
| 1:28.0 | to the Prime Minister of Greece saying that this was a case of human error, tragic human error, to use his phrase, |
| 1:35.0 | that simply doesn't do it for them and they're worried about systemic failings. |
| 1:39.0 | But despite all of that, Mr. Mitsotakis who's talking to me for this week's edition of Power Play, stands in one of his country's best-known philosophical traditions, Stoical. |
| 1:50.0 | When I present myself in Brussels and Greece is no longer the problem child but a lot of people actually applaud the progress that we have made |
| 1:56.3 | I think this is important for the country and it's also important I think for our collective psychology |
| 2:01.4 | because we have been receiving quite a fair share of |
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