“Greece is at the center of international energy planning”, said the Member of Parliament for Serres and Secretary of International Relations and EU. of New Democracy, Mr. Tassos Chatzivasileiou, speaking to OPEN regarding the Greek-American energy agreements.
As he said, “we had a ‘parade’ of American ministers, we had 25 ministers from other countries, and, at the same time, we saw the revival of the 3+1 scheme between Greece, Cyprus, Israel and the United States”. According to Mr. Hatzivasileiou, “Greece today fully identifies with the interests of allies and partners in the region. And, at the same time, it creates a new national perspective for wealth and development.”
Referring to the energy map of the region, he noted that “our country is becoming a transit energy hub to Northern Europe, even to the Baltic, with the Vertical Corridor”, while he emphasized that “the government very correctly developed the infrastructure in Revythoussa and Alexandroupoli to give substance to this project”.
Mr. Hatzivasiliou explained that Greece “has reduced its dependence on Russian natural gas from 40% to 15%”, underlining that “the safe and competitive price of energy will be achieved through American LNG that will arrive in Alexandroupoli and be channeled through the Vertical Corridor”. At the same time, he pointed out that “storage capabilities will allow us to secure more favorable prices, which will gradually be reflected in the real economy”.
Referring to Turkey, the Serrai MP noted that “Ankara is trying to prove that it is a serious energy pole and a reliable partner of the US with the aim of the F-35. Except to get the F-35s, it will have to forget about Russian gas and Russian oil. I don’t see that this is possible to happen immediately.”
Answering a related question about the possibility of tension in the region, he clarified that “Greece has a strong Armed Forces and hosts critical energy infrastructures for Europe and the USA”, pointing out that “no one would want to mess with the strong protection net that is gradually being spread around the region”. Finally, he underlined that “a new era is beginning in the 3+1 scheme, with clear support from Israel for the Greece-Cyprus-Israel electrical interconnection”, while “the discussion about the logic of EastMed is also back on the table”.