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A podcast on Greece, Cyprus and the region brought to you by The Hellenic American Leadership Council and Kathimerini. Hosted by Thanos Davelis.
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A Podcast for CrossRoad Alumni and Friends - This podcast series seeks to carry on the mission of CrossRoad and inspire young adults to travel the road of Christ, for it is in Him we find direction, meaning, hope, love, and answers.
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The Greek Current
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Israel and Turkey Restore Full Diplomatic Ties
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As Turkey and Israel restore full diplomatic relations, HALC Executive Director Endy Zemenides and Dr. Aykan Erdemir, director of international affairs research at the Anti-Defamation League, discuss what prompted the move and the implications for the region.By Hellenic Leaders
As the 100th anniversary of the Asia Minor Catastrophe approaches in September, HALC Executive Director Endy Zemenides is joined by Professor Ismini Lamb, Director of the Modern Greek Studies Program at Georgetown University, to discuss these horrific events, the genocide of Greek Orthodox Christians in Turkey, and present-day attempts at accountab…
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The Greek Current
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Turkey to receive additional Russian S400 air defense missiles
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https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-08-16/russia-turkey-spar-over-air-defense-sale-that-us-opposes?eType=EmailBlastContent&eId=1ddc9386-f4e0-4d7a-b930-ffeee0cb1022By Hellenic Leaders
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The Greek Current
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"Germany is finally acting like Europe’s major power"
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https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2022/08/08/germany-leading-power-europe-russia/By Hellenic Leaders
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The Greek Current
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Analyzing Turkey's latest incursion into the Eastern Mediterranean
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Ryan Gingeras, professor in the Department of National Security Affairs at the Naval Postgraduate School, and HALC Executive Director discuss Turkey sending a new drill ship to eastern Mediterranean, what motivates Erdogan, Turkey's approach to maritime issues, and the "Blue Homeland" concept taking hold in Turkey.…
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The Greek Current
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Turkey's attempt to reverse reality with accusations about minority rights in Thrace
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Last month marked the commemoration of the 99th anniversary of the signing of the Lausanne Treaty, a treaty that is at the heart of Greek-Turkish relations - whether we are talking about sovereignty in the Aegean Sea or the rights of minorities in each country. In its efforts to revise the status quo in the region, Turkey has made attempts to re-in…
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The Greek Current
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Operation Breaking Dawn and Developments in the Eastern Mediterranean
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HALC Executive Director Endy Zemenides discusses developments in the Eastern Mediterranean and Israel's Operation Breaking Dawn with Jonathan Schanzer, author and senior vice president of research at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies.By Hellenic Leaders
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The Greek Current
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Erdogan and Putin meet as Russia looks to blunt sanctions' impact
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Russian President Putin met with Turkish President Erdogan in Sochi on Friday, making this the leaders’ second meeting in just over two weeks. The meeting comes as Russia is turning to Turkey and other potential new trading partners as it tries to circumvent Western sanctions - reportedly setting off alarms that the Kremlin could strengthen economi…
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The Greek Current
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Greece seeks a delicate balance in the Balkans amid tensions between Serbia and Kosovo
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10:52
Earlier this week we saw tensions rise in the Western Balkans, as a dispute between Kosovo and Serbia led to protests and reports of gunfire. Amid these tensions, Greece has engaged diplomatically with both sides to help them come to an understanding. As Greece steps up its diplomatic presence in the Balkans, Athens is also upgrading its cooperatio…
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The Greek Current
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The demographic challenges facing Thrace and the efforts to revitalize the region
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Over the last years geopolitics have raised the profile of Greece’s northern region of Thrace, with key ports like Alexandroupoli taking center stage. While key investments in the security and energy infrastructure of the region accelerate, Thrace still faces a unique set of challenges. One of these is demographics, with Thrace’s border villages fa…
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The Greek Current
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The beginning of a shift in German policy when it comes to Turkey and Greece?
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Last week Germany’s Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock traveled to Greece and Turkey, where she took a clear stance against Turkish revisionism in the region, stating in unequivocal terms that the sovereignty of Greece’s islands are not up for dispute. While in Turkey, she also made a point to raise issues related to human rights violations. These …
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The Greek Current
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Turkey targets Greece's defense spending amid a new barrage of accusations
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Turkey’s Defense Minister Hulusi Akar issued a barrage of new and wild accusations against Greece recently, specifically targeting Greece’s efforts to modernize its military, which he said shows that Athens is allegedly “up to something” against Turkey. He also tried to once again raise questions about Greek sovereignty in the Aegean, and accused G…
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The Greek Current
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The case for expanding the US military presence in Greece and Cyprus
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How can Washington best balance security interests in Europe and the Middle East while still prioritizing the Indo-Pacific? Expert Aaron Stein, who joins me today on our podcast, makes the case in a recent piece for War on the Rocks that the answer might be found in deepening the military partnership with Greece, one of Washington’s most important …
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The Greek Current
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Countering Turkey's escalating provocations against Greece and Cyprus
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Earlier this week Turkey announced that its newest drill ship would set sail August 9th for a drilling operation “in the Mediterranean,” setting the stage for an escalation of tensions should the ship deploy to an area that falls within Greece or Cyprus’s EEZs. The announcement comes as Turkey’s Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu also upped the ante…
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The Greek Current
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Greek-Saudi relations in the spotlight as crown prince visits Athens
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Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman arrived in Greece Tuesday to seal a number of agreements on energy, military cooperation, and in other fields. The visit comes as Greece has forged closer diplomatic and economic ties with Saudi Arabia in recent years as it seeks to build alliances and partnerships in the wider region. This was Mohammed bin Sa…
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The Greek Current
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Wildfires and heatwaves: Are Greece and Europe ready for a hotter world?
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Wildfires have swept across Greece, and major blazes have threatened protected national forests, homes, and livelihoods as authorities issued calls for evacuations. This is taking place amid a protracted heat wave that has pushed temperatures past 41 degrees Celsius in some places. Amidst these challenges in Greece, we also saw other parts of Europ…
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The Greek Current
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Erdogan remains a headache for the US despite Ukraine grain deal
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Russia and Ukraine signed separate agreements Friday with Turkey and the UN clearing the way for exporting millions of tons of desperately needed Ukrainian grain, ending a standoff that had threatened food security around the globe. During the signing ceremony, Turkey’s President Erdogan played up his role as a statesman and Turkey’s role in mediat…
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The Greek Current
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Are Greece and Europe prepared should Russia cut off natural gas?
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The Nord Stream gas pipeline between Russia and the EU reopened this week, with deliveries slowly getting back to levels seen before the pipeline closed for maintenance earlier this month. This has allowed Europe to catch its breath, but the fear that Russia could use gas to blackmail Europe remains, and EU countries, including Greece, are preparin…
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The Greek Current
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Greece prepares as Turkey announces new drilling operation in the East Med
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On Wednesday Turkey announced that its fourth drill ship, the Abdülhamid Han, will launch operations in the Eastern Mediterranean in August, raising the prospect of heightened tensions with Greece and Cyprus. In the meantime, Greece’s Defense Minister traveled to the United States this week, where he raised the issue of Turkey’s revisionism in the …
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The Greek Current
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Why it's time for the US to completely lift the Cyprus arms embargo
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While Cyprus has become a key US partner in the Eastern Mediterranean, there is still a partial arms embargo on Cyprus as US law currently prohibits providing Cyprus with US-made weaponry. The US only partially lifted the embargo a few years ago because of concerns over Cyprus’s links to Russia, which US lawmakers called on Cyprus to address. Cypru…
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The Greek Current
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EU opens accession talks with North Macedonia and Albania
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This weekend North Macedonia’s parliament gave the government the green light to resolve a dispute with Bulgaria that paves the way for EU membership talks to begin. The deal would also unblock the start of negotiations for Albania, another EU hopeful. While this may lift Bulgaria’s veto over North Macedonia’s membership bid, there are still a numb…
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The Greek Current
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Putin looks to strengthen ties with Iran and Turkey at summit in Tehran
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Russia’s President Vladimir Putin is set to travel to Tehran on Tuesday, where he will meet with the leaders of Iran and Turkey to discuss Syria. Much is at stake in Putin’s meeting with Turkey’s Erdogan, with the two leaders set to discuss a range of issues, including Turkish threats to launch a new military incursion in Syria. Putin is also looki…
Today we’re taking you to the US House of Representatives, where the House Rules Committee voted on Tuesday to include an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act that would prohibit the sale of F-16s or modernization kits to Turkey unless certain conditions are met. The amendment was debated in the House on Wednesday night, with a vote …
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The Greek Current
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EU and Greece preparing for life without Russian gas
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EU leaders are bracing for a gas supply crunch that could freeze whole sectors of the bloc's economy as fears grow that Russia could pull the plug on supply and shut down the Nord Stream pipeline for good. If Russia does decide to pull the plug on supply, Europe, including Greece, will need to prepare for a challenging winter. This could also prove…
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The Greek Current
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Extremist dreams or official policy? Greece slams map showing major Greek islands as Turkish
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Devlet Bahceli, the leader of the ultra-nationalist MHP in Turkey and Erdogan’s junior coalition partner, recently presented a map of the Aegean that showed many Greek islands as Turkish, including Crete. The image prompted reactions from Greece’s foreign ministry and from Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, who tweeted the image and called on Turk…
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The Greek Current
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Election uncertainty in Greece amid rumors of snap polls
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Most journalists, analysts, and even politicians themselves seem to have concluded that Greece will head to early elections this fall. This week, Prime Minister Mitsotakis moved to dismiss these rumors, saying that he is prepared to assume the cost of resisting pressure for snap polls for the sake of stability, and added that he plans to see his go…
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How to outperform big high street chains and avoid a race to the bottom - Stephen Tighe, Allegro Optical
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Always treat the customer as though they're your mum, says Stephen Tighe, CEO and co-founder of Allegro Opticians. Launched just a few years ago, Allegro now has customers from America, France, Germany, Japan, New Zealand and many other parts of the world, after identifying and addressing a profound need for specialist optical care for musicians an…
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The Greek Current
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Why it's time to guarantee Greece and Cyprus a qualitative military edge
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Since the late 1960s there has been agreement among successive US administrations that Israel should have a qualitative military edge for the sake of regional peace and security. Now, as the Biden administration throws its support behind the sale of F-16 fighter jets to an increasingly revisionist and aggressive Turkey, is it time to apply this exa…
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The Greek Current
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Greece's pivotal role in promoting Balkan energy security
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As concerns grow across Europe over the possibility of a complete disruption of Russian gas flows, Greece is transforming itself into a gateway for alternative sources of energy to flow into Europe. Its northern region of Thrace, with cities like Alexandroupoli, is at the heart of this effort, particularly when it comes to enabling Balkan energy in…
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The Greek Current
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Turkey's 'hostage diplomacy' and Washington's 'Stockholm Syndrome'
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The US-Turkey relationship has been characterized by a steady attempt at “hostage diplomacy” on the part of Ankara, and its veto over Sweden and Finland’s NATO membership bids is the latest example. One devastating effect of this consistent use of “hostage diplomacy”, as HALC’s Executive Director Endy Zemenides argues in his latest piece in Kathime…
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The Greek Current
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Greece's anti-drone system for its islands
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11:19
Greece has quietly been building an anti-drone system that will significantly enhance its ability to defend its islands in the Aegean. The system being deployed, which uses Israeli technology and has similar characteristics to Israel’s Drone Dome, essentially operates in a way that interferes with the flight capability of potential enemy UAVs. Asid…
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The Greek Current
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Is Turkey's deal with Sweden and Finland a win for Erdogan?
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Earlier this week there were many who anticipated that Turkey would stand by its veto over Sweden and Finland’s NATO membership bids. Instead, on Tuesday night we saw the three countries reach an agreement that NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg said addressed Turkey’s concerns, essentially paving the way for the Nordic countries to join NATO. After the d…
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From 'you'll never work again' to her own business despite finance roadblock – Sarah Beaumont Inspires
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Sarah Beaumont had held high-level management roles and worked all over the world. But when a chronic condition left her in constant pain she was told she'd never work again. Now she's launched and runs her own business helping other people, and tells her story in today's episode. Diagnosed with Ehlers Danlos syndrome and Fibromyalgia – both long t…
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The Greek Current
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Tourists are flocking to Greece, but workers are in short supply
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This year holiday bookings to Greece are skyrocketing, and many are hoping Greece could reach or even exceed the numbers from 2019, a record breaking summer. While visitors are returning to Greece en masse this summer, the country is struggling to find enough people to work in its vital tourism industry to cope with this increase in demand. Prime M…
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The Greek Current
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The broader implications of Bulgaria's political crisis
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Last week Bulgaria’s government collapsed after a no-confidence vote in parliament. The move comes at a delicate time - especially considering Bulgaria’s position vis-a-vis Ukraine and Russia, and its role in holding up the EU integration of North Macedonia and Albania. Following the vote of no-confidence, Bulgaria’s parliament voted to lift its ve…
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The Greek Current
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Why it's time for a conversation about Turkey’s place in NATO
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As this week’s NATO summit kicks off, instead of welcoming Sweden and Finland into the alliance, leaders will have to address the question of Turkey, which is derailing NATO’s enlargement and threatening NATO ally Greece. While Greece is prepared to respond decisively if Turkish President Erdogan raises questions about the sovereignty of Greek isla…
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The Greek Current
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EU leaders focus on Ukraine, the Western Balkans, and more during summit
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This week the EU’s 27 leaders took a historic step during a two day summit in Brussels to grant EU candidate status to Ukraine. While the move marks a significant step for EU enlargement efforts, Western Balkan leaders, who traveled to Brussels for high level meetings with their EU counterparts, were left frustrated at the lack of movement on their…
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The Greek Current
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Why US leadership is needed on East Med energy
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Last week the EU finalized a natural gas agreement with Israel and Egypt, building on what’s been a busy month when it comes to energy in the Eastern Mediterranean. These agreements further showcase how the region can be a game-changer in reducing the dependence of America’s European allies on Russian energy. At the same time, however, we’re seeing…
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The Greek Current
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US 'neutrality' and Turkish aggression in the Aegean
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In response to Turkey’s clear aggression in the Aegean, the State Department has resorted to a policy of neutrality and equidistance. Instead of calling out Turkey’s revisionism and condemning its threats against Greece in a clear and unequivocal way, it has resorted to on the one hand supporting the principle of sovereignty and territorial integri…
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The Greek Current
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The debate about European enlargement and the Western Balkans
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This week Western Balkan leaders will travel to Brussels for a high-level meeting with EU leaders where they will discuss progress on their integration with the EU and the challenges posed by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The meeting comes as the debate over EU enlargement picks up again, which has seen calls from key European leaders for the EU to…
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The Greek Current
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Efforts to de-escalate tensions between Greece and Turkey
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Last week Greece’s Defense Minister Nikos Panagiotopoulos and his Turkish counterpart Hulusi Akar held a brief one-on-one meeting in Brussels. The meeting came amid escalating aggressive rhetoric from Ankara that has taken tensions between Greece and Turkey to dangerous levels. Vassilis Nedos, Kathimerini’s diplomatic and defense editor, joins Than…
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The Greek Current
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Greece prepares for summer heatwaves and wildfires
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Greece has stepped up efforts to combat wildfires in the wake of last year’s devastating blazes as the country braces itself for another scorching summer. As Christos Stylianides, Greece’s first minister for climate crisis and civil protection, laid out in a recent interview with the Financial Times, Athens is hiring more specialized firefighters a…
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The Greek Current
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Turkey testing US limits amid climate of mistrust
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A climate of mistrust toward Turkey, which has been prominent in the halls of Congress, has now spread and taken hold across Washington, DC. This is particularly notable following Ankara’s veto over Sweden and Finland’s NATO membership bid, its decision to launch a new incursion into Syria, its relations with Russia, and its dangerous escalation of…
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The Greek Current
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Russia and Turkey's nuclear cooperation at Akkuyu
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While Russian-Turkish dealings in a number of conflict hotspots in the Middle East, the Black Sea and the Caucasus have attracted international attention, reactions to Ankara and Moscow’s collaboration when it comes to nuclear energy have been rather muted. Professor Ioannis Grigoriadis joins Thanos Davelis to look into the nuclear plant Russia and…
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The Greek Current
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Turkey and its pursuit of 'strategic autonomy'
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In its quest for strategic autonomy, Turkey is pursuing a radical revision of the regional status quo by projecting power in the region with increasing aggression and disregard for international law. Admiral Alexandros Diakopoulos, the former National Security Advisor for the Greek Prime Minister, joins Thanos Davelis to look at Ankara’s pursuit of…
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The Greek Current
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Debunking Turkey’s claims about the sovereignty of Greek islands
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Erdogan warned that he was “not joking” on Thursday about his demand for Greece to demilitarize its Aegean islands, and Foreign Minister Cavusoglu has warned Greece to demilitarize or face a debate about the island’s sovereignty. Greece has effectively rebuked Turkey’s claims, but Ankara continues to escalate its rhetoric. Professor Petros Liakoura…
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Could Europe be facing a new refugee crisis?
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The war in Ukraine – one of the world’s biggest exporters of grain – is fuelling food shortages around the world and pushing millions of people into famine, raising fears of new waves of refugees toward southern Europe. The EU’s Mediterranean countries, which would be on the frontlines once again, are on alert, and have called on the EU to act with…
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The Greek Current
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Erdogan plans new military operation in Syria
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In late May, Turkish President Erdogan announced that Turkey plans to launch another operation into northern Syria. Turkish artillery fire in the region has been registered since early June, while Russia has intensified military patrols in the parts of northern Syria it controls. Both the US and Russia have called on Turkey not to launch this new m…
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The Greek Current
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Is Turkey looking to annex the occupied part of Cyprus?
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Cyprus is lodging a complaint to the UN over Turkey’s new financial assistance deal with Turkish Cypriots and over Turkey’s decision to designate the Turkish Cypriots’ unrecognized main airport as a domestic flight route, effectively turning it into a Turkish one. There is a fear among Turkish Cypriots as well that both the financial deal and the a…
Since its inception, the Turkish government has used the Grey Wolves, a Turkish ultranationalist organization, to target Kurds and other minorities both within Turkey and abroad. Diliman Abdulkader, the Co-Founder and Director of American Friends of Kurdistan, joins Thanos Davelis to discuss his latest publication on the Grey Wolves, which highligh…
