Alternate Foreign Minister Giorgos Katrougalos travelled to Berlin on Wednesday, 11 January, at the invitation of the German Minister of State for Europe, M. Roth, for bilateral consultations. He also had meetings with Mr. T. Nord, Federal MP and member of the Die Linke party, and with the Chairman of the German United Services Union (Ver.di), F. Bsirske. At the end of his visit, Mr. Katrougalos gave an interview to the Greek programme of Deutsche Welle and met with Greek press correspondents in Berlin.
During his meeting with the German Minister of State for Europe, which took place in a very good atmosphere, the discussion focused on issues of bilateral, European and international interest, in which there was significant convergence of views and appraisals. Messrs. Katrougalos and Roth both reconfirmed their intention to continue and further deepen their cooperation.
Moreover, the Alternate Foreign Minister stressed to his German collocutors the need to promote a progressive agenda on both a political and social level in order to revive European citizens' interest in the fundamental values, the ideals and the vision of the EU and to reverse the extremist nationalist and populist trends appearing in Europe. Mr. Katrougalos also highlighted that there is a need for a new policy alternative to the forces insisting on ineffective austerity policies that lack a social dimension and do not respond to the concerns of European citizens. The German Minister of State for Europe and Messrs. Nord and Bsirske largely agreed with the above views.
Finally, the Greek and German sides reaffirmed their readiness to intensify contacts on all levels.
January 12, 2017