In his interview on “Mega Mag” with journalists A. Papadopoulos and T. Fouskidis, Alternate Minister of Foreign Affairs Miltiadis Varvitsiotis emphasised with regard to the European response to the coronavirus that the European Commission’s unfavourable projections for the European economies prove that the EU must react convincingly and boldly. “The response has to be fast, decisive and flexible,” he said.
He noted that it was clear from yesterday’s video conference on the Western Balkans that the issue has stalled, as the views of the North and South have yet to converge. The bloc has not yet found the legal route for paying out European support – what form the support will take and what resources will be drawn from – or for resolving air travel-related issues (health protocols, compensation for passengers). But what’s certain is that Greece will not be accepting visitors from third countries until 15 June, as the Commission is expected to extend these border closures in its decision, he said, adding that our country has greater difficulties due to the extent of our economy’s dependence on tourism.
Finally, the Alternate Minister highlighted that the challenge for Greece right now is to achieve a smaller recession than the Commission predicts for 2020 and higher-than-projected growth in 2021.
May 7, 2020