Saudi Crown Prince in Athens – Investments and collaborations

The official visit of the crown prince of Saudi Arabia Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud (MBS) to Greece, today and tomorrow, and his meeting with Kyriakos Mitsotakis today at his office at Maximos Mansion comes to highlight the strategic nature of Greece-Saudi Arabia relations, which was confirmed during the Prime Minister’s official visit to Riyadh in October 2021, and is expected to be sealed with the signing of a series of bilateral agreements in Athens. The visit also marks the strong interest of the Saudi side in major investments in Greece.

In fact, government sources consider it indicative of the importance that Saudi Arabia attaches to relations with Greece – as a pillar of security and stability in the region – that tonight’s visit of Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman to Athens is the first of the crown prince of Saudi Arabia on European soil since April 2018.

The strategic nature of relations has also been sealed by Greece’s contribution to the defense of Saudi Arabia through the deployment of a Patriot air defense missile battery, a move that has been appreciated by Riyadh, as revealed during Mitsotakis’ visit to the Saudi capital – a visit during which the establishment of a Supreme Cooperation Council of the two countries was also agreed on.

In fact, the signing of the agreement establishing a Strategic Cooperation Council which will institutionalize bilateral cooperation in several sectors is, according to government sources, a strong conviction of the strategic character of the relations in the context of the government’s strategy for the formation of a network of alliances with Gulf countries. As highlighted by government sources, Mohammed bin Salman will be accompanied by a large government delegation, consisting of the ministers of Investment, Trade, Communications and Technology and the head of the sovereign wealth fund (PIF) – whose members will sign and exchange agreements with their Greek counterparts.

The deals

Among the agreements to be signed between the Greek ministers and their Saudi counterparts are a military cooperation agreement, an energy cooperation agreement, as Greece becomes a hub for energy transfer to Europe and can be a bridge with the Middle East, an agreement in science and technology, harmony in culture.

Of particular importance is the agreement to be signed by the four companies leading the “East to Med data Corridor” (EMC) project (STC, TTSA, PPC and Cyta), so that the EMC project, the submarine and terrestrial cable interconnection for the data transfer between Asia and Europe via Saudi Arabia, Cyprus and Greece, can be implemented starting in autumn. This is a project that essentially upgrades the position of our country as a hub for data storage and distribution in the region of South-Eastern Europe, bringing tangible economic and geostrategic benefits.

The proposal for the construction of the EMC was first put on the table by the Greek side to Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman in the context of the visit of Kyriakos Mitsotakis to Riyadh, in October 2021, where it was agreed to proceed with the project. The first signatures were signed last April, while the preliminary conditions were approved at the end of May, during the work of the 5th Joint Interministerial Committee of Greece – Saudi Arabia in Athens.

According to government sources, the 30-member business delegation that will accompany Mohammed Bin Salman for contacts and collaborations with Greek businesses is expected to be large, with the goal of Athens being direct investments from Saudi Arabia in Greece, and cooperation in new sectors, as well as the stronger presence of Greek businesses in Saudi Arabia. In fact, it is pointed out that the business contacts come in continuation of the activity of the Greece-Saudi Arabia Business Council and the further strengthening and deepening of economic and business relations. This was recently marked by the arrival of a large business delegation in Athens as part of the Hellenic-Saudi Business Forum and the meeting of the Joint Interministerial Committee, which was led by the Minister of Investments of Saudi Arabia, Khalid Al Faleh