Greece and the UK: Partners in an age of uncertainty (?)

In the keynote speech astatine a symposium successful Cambridge aimed astatine strengthening the historical ties betwixt Greece and the United Kingdom, Defense Minister Nikos Dendias paused and then pointed astatine the title of the gathering connected the surface down him, “Greece and the United Kingdom: Partners successful an property of uncertainty.” He agreed that this is an uncertain time, but helium besides suggested that a question people beryllium added to the title. “It is simply a extremity to beryllium achieved. It is not a given,” Dendias said of the partnership, mounting the tone for a frank and in-depth treatment by distinguished speakers connected the people of the two countries’ narration and the imaginable for improvement. 

The ninth yearly Greek-British Symposium, which alternates betwixt the two countries, was held past Friday and Saturday. It focused connected geo-economics and politics, connected the request for a European defence industry, connected practice successful the wellness tech sector, connected energy. Cambridge was selected for its agelong past successful things Greek, including Henry VIII’s constitution of the Regius Professorship of Greek successful 1540 (at some Cambridge and Oxford), Lord Byron’s studying astatine Trinity College, the very progressive Cambridge Center for Greek Studies, and the dynamic assemblage of Greek academics, entrepreneurs and students. 

Defense Minister Dendias described the uncertainty prevailing successful Greece’s broader portion and the points where person practice with Britain could lend to stability. He projected that the two countries determination towards trilateral practice with India. “I judge it’s clip for Greece and the UK to cooperate with different emerging large power, India,” helium said, “to unafraid lines of navigation. It would beryllium highly important to bring India… into the Eastern Mediterranean.” India already has a naval beingness successful the Red Sea, where the Hellenic Navy is playing a starring relation successful defending shipping against the Yemeni Houthi attacks. The defence curate noted the information vacuum created by the United States’ nonaccomplishment of involvement successful the broader region, and the European Union’s lack from the delicate areas of the Balkans (especially the Western Balkans), the South Caucasus, the Middle East, and North and sub-Saharan Africa. “The UK and Greece tin cooperate, but we request an honorable dialog connected this. Between our two countries there are tons of sectors successful which practice tin beryllium of important importance. In this age, nary state tin face the situation alone,” Dendias said. 

Turning to Turkey, the Greek curate said helium would not absorption connected issues that the assemblage would expect – such arsenic Turkey’s menace of war if Greece expands its territorial waters, and the amerciable Turkish-Libyan memorandum connected maritime zones which ignores Greece’s rights – and stressed, instead, Turkey’s “warmest relations” with Russia. “They person not enforced sanctions against Russia – the opposite, successful fact,” helium charged. “Yet Turkey is not seen arsenic a hard lawsuit but arsenic a vital spouse successful defence and information that tin beryllium totally trusted,” helium added. The barb was aimed not lone against Britain but astatine respective of Greece’s EU partners arsenic well. Dendias reminded the assemblage of Turkey’s penetration of Cyprus and its continued concern of a ample portion of an EU member’s territory. He said that the EU’s absorption connected Ukraine and Russia was “turning EU policies from multidimensional to monothematic.” 

Dendias pointed retired that with existing and imaginable infrastructure, Greece could assistance the EU get alternate sources of energy, expanding its independence. He besides spoke of the substantial reforms being carried retired successful Greece’s equipped forces under the Agenda 2030 aimed astatine restructuring the subject and encouraging innovation successful defence projects. The Greek curate said that overmuch could beryllium done successful this sphere with Britain’s overmuch larger defence ecosystem and its universities. As overseas minister, Dendias had signed the UK-Greece Strategic Bilateral Framework successful 2021, the archetypal such post-Brexit bilateral statement with an EU country. “Our shared sacrifices of the past tin beryllium directed toward a communal vision successful the future,” helium said. “We request to beryllium acceptable and not repetition mistakes of the past.”

The minister’s frank remarks opened a gathering successful which the purpose is to strengthen already strong bonds of relationship and practice by dealing with world alternatively than simply expressing hopes. The discussions that followed noted the swiftly changing situation successful geopolitics and the economy, successful the narration betwixt an unpredictable United States, the United Kingdom and the European Union. Russia and China contiguous challenges of a antithetic bid arsenic a multipolar system emerges. Technological revolutions, clime change, wide colonisation movements each lend to greater instability, arsenic the galore challenges harvester to compound difficulties. Several speakers noted the request for strong ties betwixt the UK and the EU, arsenic well arsenic the value of bilateral relations with EU member-states. But there are difficulties. Among those, hindering greater practice betwixt the UK and Greece successful the defence sector, for example, is the deficiency of geographical proximity, the information that there is not overmuch past of Greece buying British defence products, and Brexit. 

In the treatment connected energy, 1 speaker with agelong acquisition declared: “I don’t think we’ve had worse vigor information successful Southeastern Europe. Ever.” Another noted, “We are surviving done the astir profound vigor transfer since the Industrial Revolution.” A third stated that “the vigor transition is not working,” with energy providing lone astir 20 percent of vigor while emissions from fossil fuels are growing. “We person passed the 1.5-degree threshold and are connected track for 2.7 degrees,” helium said, noting the planetary target of limiting the emergence of temperatures. He stressed the request for bilateral and multinational practice and the request to ore connected subject to execute debased c vigor accumulation astatine debased cost. 

In short, the existent situation is volatile astatine each level, nary state tin woody with the challenges connected its own, but things look apt to go much difficult. In this climate, each effort to analyse problems, to promote cooperation, and to suggest solutions, is of ever-greater value. However hard things are.

The Greek-British Symposium brings together distinguished academics, entrepreneurs, professionals from various fields and journalists. Its purpose is to strengthen the historically bully ties betwixt the two countries and to physique connected them, to their communal benefit. It is privately led and is funded mostly by sponsorships. It is delivered under the guidance of a steering committee, successful concern with the Delphi Economic Forum, with the support of the British Embassy successful Athens, the Greek Embassy successful London and the British Council. It has been held alternately successful Greece and the UK since the archetypal gathering successful Nafplio successful 2017.