Interview on ANT1 and Nikos Hatzinikolaou, during which he is asked to answer major questions, is given by Kyriakos Mitsotakis.
“Global economic turmoil and inflation, along with inflation in our country, are fueled almost exclusively by fuel prices,” stressed Kyriakos Mitsotakis in response to a question about international turmoil.
“Our country’s diplomatic capital, in light of this conflict as well, has been upgraded. Greece has a close relationship with Israel, not necessarily with this government, but with Israel. We have condemned, that is, the attacks in southern Lebanon. However, it has provided substantial assistance to Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Qatar,” emphasized Kyriakos Mitsotakis, rejecting the possibility of Greece’s involvement. “We respect the agreements we have signed,” he commented.
“Greece is present in Libya, we are present and support the armed groups in Lebanon, we are present in the Gulf states, in the Security Council, fighting for what is obvious for a global shipping power, namely free navigation throughout the world and, of course, the Strait of Hormuz”, noted the prime minister.
Nikos Hatzinikolaou asked about the challenges posed by Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, citing the Turkish Ministry of Defense’s statement regarding an illegal Cyprus-France agreement. “Do you know of any prime minister who deliberately seeks troubled waters? I do not. We want functional relations with Turkey, calm waters, but also the ability to weather storms,” commented Kyriakos Mitsotakis.
“Extension of territorial waters in the Ionian Sea to 12 nautical miles. Exclusive economic zone with Egypt, maritime spatial planning, marine parks, drilling for the first time in 40 years, Chevron south of Crete. Tell me, how exactly did Greece back down from its long-standing demands through the Athens Declaration. “Now, for the first time, Greece is setting the agenda and Turkey is reacting,” continued Kyriakos Mitsotakis.
He then spoke about “the calm waters of the southeastern Aegean, which are enjoyed by thousands of Turkish tourists,” as well as a common migration policy. Regarding the bill, Kyriakos Mitsotakis emphasized that “we don’t know what it will contain.”
“Both former prime ministers have dealt with Turkey. We are aware of the complexity of this relationship. As far as I recall, they too sought—and I repeat, rightly so—to have a functional relationship with Turkey. As for the SAFE issue, no one expected Greece to oppose Turkey regarding European funding. Which is exactly what happened. I am the only prime minister who went to Ankara and raised the issue of casus belli. “I don’t recall any other prime minister having done so,” commented Kyriakos Mitsotakis regarding the criticism from Kostas Karamanlis and Antonis Samarakis, which he described as “unfair.” He declined to comment further on the two former prime ministers, “both of whom were elected.” “Until 2023, we did not accept criticism on these issues,” he continued.
Regarding accuracy, he emphasized: “Let me start by saying that the accumulated inflation following the pandemic is the biggest problem facing all European governments and many Greek households. A large segment of society is struggling to make ends meet; I am fully aware of this. The recent rise in inflation, however, is due to fuel prices. Historically, we have had higher taxes on fuel because it remains a key source of revenue for the state. This government has done a lot—certainly not everything we’d like, but what we can. Millions of our fellow citizens have seen a significant increase in disposable income. The minimum wage is now 920 euros, up from 650. Fuel Pass, a child allowance, and measures totaling 800 million euros. A large portion of these increases is also offset by inflation. We must be realistic about what we can do. We have targets set by Europe. If we deviate from these targets, we will be placed under surveillance. The shortfall created by the reduction in the special tax on fuel will reach 1 billion. I want them to tell me which tax I need to raise to make up for it.”
Regarding the criticism of the subsidy policy, he commented: “Which subsidies are you referring to? Why do we need surpluses? To reduce the debt. The greatest success, a national success, is the reduction of the debt by 60 points. We cannot pass the debt on to the country. We were swallowed up by the insurmountable debt. The government did not choose a policy of handouts; we only did that during Covid. Our policy is to cut taxes. Disability benefits and child benefits will remain, and those who criticize us can tell us if we want to cut them.”
“The tax cuts are a result of this policy, that 560,000 new jobs were created, is due to the fact that our investment framework helped us attract investment. The top priority must be how fiscal consolidation will translate into household income. Where there are market distortions, we have an independent authority that imposes fines. I am a liberal politician, and we have set a cap, which is a highly interventionist measure,” he replied regarding Greece’s upgrade in the investment rating.
“Fines are useful, and legislation is useful for profit margins. We need to bring the government, industry, manufacturers, and supermarkets to the same table and reach a social responsibility agreement. We need to tell them that we are willing to roll back some of the interventionist measures, provided they lower prices. We need not only the carrot, but also the stick,” he replied again to a question about high prices.
Regarding the Thessaloniki International Fair, Kyriakos Mitsotakis emphasized: “We took a very significant step regarding private debt. Both for out-of-court settlements and for debt that cannot be seized. For every fellow citizen we want to—and possibly must—help, there are other fellow citizens who are law-abiding. We cannot disrupt this culture of payment. First of all, we can go to the Thessaloniki International Fair and announce measures. We are in a position to support society. During the first four years, businesses received significant support. During the second four years, we turned our attention to salaried employees and freelancers. “We don’t know how much time we’ll have to speak at the Thessaloniki International Fair,” commented Kyriakos Mitsotakis, who rejected the reinstatement of the 13th-month salary, however, “doctors and other professionals have seen raises that far exceed the 13th month’s salary.”
Regarding the salary increases for metropolitans: “I find it hard to accept that a metropolitan’s salary would be significantly lower than that of a mufti. That was the request of the Church of Greece and the hierarchy. As for the priests, this government resolved a 70-year-old issue, namely their protection through their permanent positions.”
Nikos Hatzinikolaou asked Kyriakos Mitsotakis about the rule of law, which he described as “unpleasant” for the government. The prime minister replied: “Let’s start from the beginning. It is a complex issue. First, when we talk about the rule of law, we are talking about the overall framework within which a well-governed society must function. The European Commission issues a report on the rule of law. The European Union says that we are making significant progress year after year. We take the European Commission’s recommendations very seriously. Regarding the election of judges, for example, we will discuss this in the Constitutional Review. The judges themselves now vote on who they want to preside over the court. This is significant progress and a step in the right direction. We need to look at what is being said outside Greece about the rule of law. When The Economist says that progress has been made in Greece. For heaven’s sake, does anyone believe that there is censorship of journalists in Greece? Newspapers are being published that wouldn’t be published in any European country. Eight out of ten newspapers are highly critical of the government.”
“Let’s now look at what we’ve done about the backlogs. We abolished the magistrates’ courts and merged them with the courts of first instance. We doubled the number of first-instance judges. As a result, there has been an improvement in the speed of case adjudication. This is what citizens want. “I have always taken the stance of not commenting on judicial decisions, whether I like them or not,” he continued. Regarding OPEKEPE, he said that “we are fighting a major battle against the deep state. The OPEKEPE case, first of all, involves cases from 2021. I am not invoking the passage of time. I was the first to acknowledge that there was a significant delay at OPEKEPE. We made a drastic decision to abolish OPEKEPE and incorporate it into the AADE. We were late because the Gordian knot had to be cut, not untied. I take my share of the responsibility for this. Do you know how important it will be to know how many animals we have in the country? Once the Land Registry is completed, we will know who is farming. It is the most difficult reform I will undertake in my seven years as prime minister. No opposition party voted for it. A request was made to lift the immunity of 13 of our MPs. I immediately said yes. The European Public Prosecutor’s Office came and said they wanted to investigate you further. Two have already been deposited. The European Public Prosecutor’s Office came and said, it wasn’t 1.5 million, it was 110–120 thousand. Let it run its course and we’ll see. I’m not in a position to say whether Ms. Kovesi is a good prosecutor. That’s judged by how many convictions she’s secured. I hope she’s wrong, but we’ll see.”
“Do you know of any other government that sends its ministers to court?”, Kyriakos Mitsotakis asked rhetorically regarding Tempi. He also said: “We have 36 defendants in the Tempi case, 33 of whom are charged with felonies. The trial is being held in an empty courtroom. Only the judiciary can ultimately decide. A massive lie was constructed around Tempi, the infamous “beating,” which all the opposition parties jumped on to insinuate that I went there to cover something up. Now we understand what is going on with the Tempi case. How many times have they called me a murderer? I went there immediately afterward and I will never forget what I saw. I will not accept any insinuation that at that moment we had in mind to cover up a crime.”
Regarding Contract 717, he said that the courts will decide. “How many people have been killed on the Patras-Pyrgos highway? The road was built; we built it, and I’m proud of it. Why aren’t we going after the previous ministers to send them to a special court? To put it very simply, if someone falls into a pothole, gets injured, and we hold the mayor criminally liable.”
Regarding the wiretaps , he emphasized: “I have stated my position many times. I acknowledged responsibilities for the malfunction; people left their posts, changes were made at the EYP, and the case went to court. The EYP was a valuable ally. The rest is being investigated by the judiciary, and I have nothing to say about that.”
Regarding the elections, he commented: “The elections will take place in the spring of 2027. This isn’t the first time I’ve said this. Why in the spring? If I wanted to push the constitutional limits, I could hold them in July or August. On July 1, the country takes over the presidency of the European Council of the European Union. I’m not prejudging the outcome, but the country must be ready. I am concerned about the level of political dialogue, the toxicity. Why aren’t the opposition parties participating in the discussions on Constitutional Revision?”
Regarding Tsipras or Androulakis, he replied: “Why should I have an opinion on a matter that doesn’t concern me and that I can’t influence? We see a political force that is clearly in first place, with more than double the percentage of the second-place party. A lower percentage, but with the goal of a majority government within reach. The political landscape is fragmented, with a formal opposition that is politically independent. Isn’t the Left just a Tower of Babel and a circus? The title “ELAS” was discussed, but Mr. Polakis was left with “EAM”. If your license is revoked three times, can you still drive the same car? Mr. Tsipras has had his license revoked three times, but he’s still the same person. I don’t see if there’s an honesty meter, but I watched the documentary “To the Millimeter” on SKAI and it gave me chills. If we’re talking about integrity and political integrity, will Mr. Tsipras say so? We mentioned the Patras-Pyrgos highway that was split up to go to his favorite contractor, who kept Parliament in session for a week even though elections had been called, in order to push through the changes he wanted to the criminal justice system.”
Regarding Karistianos: “I don’t know where he stands; he hasn’t made his position clear. Whether his popularity translates into political support is debatable. He hasn’t convinced me that he has the basic knowledge—not the specialized kind—to stand as a politician. He will run again, he will be under pressure, and the public will judge whether he can hold his own.”
Regarding Samaras: “I hadn’t heard that before (note: that Mitsotakis and Tsipras are the same, as Samaras claimed). In hindsight, expelling him wasn’t a mistake. Mr. Samaras comes from the party; he took him back under his wing and made him prime minister. He was a good prime minister; I was his minister. I cannot imagine that this man would do anything to harm the party that gave him a second chance and made him prime minister, I cannot accept that. The point is whether we can, not whether we should resolve our personal issues, if Mr. Samaras believes what he says about foreign policy. In ’23 he didn’t believe it; he campaigned with New Democracy. If he believes it now, it’s obviously not possible. I want to believe he won’t form a party.”
On his relationship with Kostas Karamanlis: “When I speak to the party’s political committee, on the wall are the photographs of all the leaders of New Democracy. I treat them all with respect and dignity, because I believe they deserve it. That doesn’t mean we have to agree on everything—we don’t agree on everything—but the relationship must be dignified and functional.”
