Politics
Greece bolsters ties with UAE, building on opposition to Turkish actions
Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis visited Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates, this week in what was his second trip to the UAE in 2020 after an earlier one in March.
Govt focusses on post-lockdown management amid persistently high Covid numbers
As Greece’s hospitalisations and deaths from coronavirus remain at alarming levels, government officials are starting to shift their attention to the next stage in the management of the pandemic with the announcement of a vaccination strategy, while tentative dates are being aired for the easing of the lockdown.
Uprising anniversary marked by grandstanding and clashes
The government’s bid on Tuesday to stop all protests marking the 1973 revolt against the junta turned into a fiasco and ended in clashes between police and demonstrators.
Anniversary of Polytechnic uprising unites left against ND clampdown on gatherings
A political controversy erupted over the marking of November 17, the anniversary of the 1973 Polytechnic uprising against Greece’s military dictatorship, which is traditionally celebrated with a large-scale rally in the centre of Athens.
Surge in Covid-19 deaths as work on adjusted 2021 budget nears completion
More than 100 Greeks who contracted Covid-19 died over Saturday and Sunday, making it the worst weekend since the pandemic began.
PM pledges handouts amid discontent and gripes over coronavirus strategy
The government is due to temporarily suspend the auctions of repossessed properties and is also aiming to provide a Christmas handout to some Greeks as New Democracy tries to respond to the heavy criticism aimed at Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and his administration over the handling of the coronavirus crisis.
Opposition parties attack government narrative on pandemic handling
As the pandemic continues to hit northern Greece hard, the government’s claims to competent management of the healthcare crisis are coming in for a pummelling by the opposition.
ICU shortages provide opposition with fodder in political battle over Covid-19 strategy
The opposition parties are ramping up the pressure on the government over the public health system’s capacity amid claims that there are no more ICU beds available for Covid-19 patients in Thessaloniki, which is currently at the epicentre of the latest wave.
Political friction surfaces in first days of second national lockdown
Following the imposition of the second national lockdown, opposition parties have gone on the offensive over what they describe as the government’s failure to act promptly to contain the second wave of the Covid pandemic.
Athens hopes Biden will spur change in policy, curbing Ergodan
The election of Joe Biden as the 46th US President has fired up expectations in Athens for a further improvement in Greek-US relations and that Washington will be supportive of Athens’s positions in its ongoing crisis with Turkey.