Greek Minister of Development and Investment Adonis Georgiadis said the diversification of energy sources was the European Union’s most important priority.
He noted that the world would never return to the previous situation, even if the Russian-Ukrainian war ended.
In this regard, Georgiadis stressed that all European countries would try to find many other sources of energy, to stop depending on Russian gas, revealing a plan to launch natural gas carriers to Europe through his country, in addition to the Azerbaijan pipeline.
In an interview with Asharq Al-Awsat on the sidelines of the Future Investment Initiative forum in Riyadh, the Greek minister said that Saudi Arabia, as part of the Group of Twenty, could play a major role in stabilizing the global economy.
He added that Greece respected the recent OPEC+ decision, saying it was imperative to work towards maintaining market balance.
“We have to find a way to avoid recession… A good partnership will achieve possible solutions to curb the recession, which will be very bad for Western societies, because it will hamper investments, reduce consumption and harm the economy,” he remarked.
Saudi-Greek cooperation
Georgiadis noted that trade exchange between Riyadh and Athens was close to 1.4 billion euros annually, excluding oil.
“Our main ambition is to reach at least 2 billion euros over the next three years, and we are working hard in this direction. This year, we established the Greek-Saudi Business Council, the first meeting of which will be held in Athens on Nov. 7-8,” he told Asharq Al-Awsat.
The Greek minister pointed to a number of bilateral agreements that were signed during the visit of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to Greece in July, asserting that the two countries would reach their desired goals through these partnerships.
With regards to investments, Georgiadis said his country would present many investment opportunities, stressing that the Saudi-Greek Business Council has focused its efforts on diverse investments.
“We are certain that our cooperation with the Kingdom will serve Vision 2030,” he said. “It is a great vision for the Kingdom, and we want to participate in some of its vital achievements.”
The minister revealed that Greece would witness a record value of exports and tourism income, noting that the country was open for business and enjoyed many opportunities.
Future Investment Initiative
Regarding his participation in the Future Investment Initiative (FII) forum, he said: “First, I would like to say that I was very pleased to be in Saudi Arabia and to be among the participants in the main sessions of the conference… I believe that the Future Investment Initiative conference was a great success for Saudi Arabia, as it brought together people from all over the world… to exchange views on all important international and domestic issues.”
He continued: “Most importantly, it has set a great ground for promoting the new vision of Saudi Arabia, which has something to offer the world, so I would like to congratulate all the people who contributed to making this event a success.”
Georgiadis emphasized that Saudi Arabia was turning into a renewable energy producer at a very high speed, in the same way that Greece was becoming a major regional hub for energy and purification of environmental pollution, in addition to renewable energy and the distribution of liquefied and natural gas.
He pointed to the building of a data cable between Saudi Arabia and Greece, noting that negotiations were underway to sign a memorandum of understanding on energy and electricity cables between the two countries.
Energy scarcity challenges
Georgiadis touched on the ability of Europe in general and Greece in particular to overcome the challenges of energy and gas scarcity, saying: “Diversification of energy sources is now the most important priority in the European Union.”
“Even if the war stops tomorrow, we will never go back to the world we were in before the Russian-Ukrainian war,” he remarked.
He added: “All EU countries will try to find many other sources of energy, so that they do not have to depend on Russian sources. This will not happen again.”
