Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Friday received the visiting chairman of the powerful US Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, US Sen. Robert Menendez at his Maximos Mansion office, with the former heaping praise on the senior New Jersey lawmaker for his contributions toward the drafting and ratification of the landmark 2021 Greece Mutual Defense Cooperation Agreement (MDCA). US Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fl) co-sponsored the legislation.
Sen. Menendez again returned to Greece, after being honored by the Greek state last August for his contributions towards strengthening bilateral ties, in order to receive an honorary doctorate by the National Kapodistrian University of Athens.
During a wide-ranging discussion, talks focused on Greek-US relations – which both sides described as excellent – and even closer cooperation. The US ambassador to Greece, George Tsunis, and Greece’s ambassador to the United States, Alexandra Papadopoulou attended the meeting.
The dire situation in Ukraine due to the ongoing Russian invasion was also discussed, with Menendez expressing his appreciation for the Greek government clear-cut stance, such as providing humanitarian aid and military equipment.
He also underlined that Greece is a stable democracy and a reliable partner and ally of the US in the southeast flank of NATO.
Menendez, in particular, cited the importance that Washington ascribes to the extreme northeast port of Alexandroupolis, as he recently toured the facility and same-name city. , A major floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) for LNG is being built off Alexandroupolis.
Menendez on Turkey
Speaking during his proclamation as an honorary professor at the Athens University, reiterated that Turkey is the greatest threat in the eastern Mediterranean.
Along those same lines, he said official Ankara’s tactics are not reminiscent of a democratic country, while he repeated his opposition to an agreement opening the way for an upgrade of Turkey’s F-16 fleet.
Mitsotakis was scheduled to host a dinner in Menendez’s honor in the same evening.
