Electronic Archive of Greek PM Antonis Samaras
The status of Sino-Greek relations is excellent. Ongoing meetings at the highest political level and new arrivals by Chinese delegations from various business sectors to Greece are characteristic. The Chinese interest in investing is unquestionable. Benefits for Greece will be subsequently high in a period the country attempts to recover after the dramatic orderly default of 2012. From the very first moment chinaandgreece has actively supported the promotion of co-operation between China and Greece and has encouraged the implementation of practical steps towards this direction.
Nonetheless, delays are currently observed – as opposed to the situation in other countries such as Britain, France, Italy, Portugal and Hungary. The hesitant and uncertain stance of Greek politicians along with obstacles put by China’s competitors create skepticism to Beijing because it wants to proceed at a faster and more decisive pace. Beijing has already revealed its intentions vis-à-vis Greece. Now it is the turn of Greece to decide how it seeks to proceed by starting with the activation of the new COSCO’s investments in the port of Piraeus. Greece needs to immediately assess whether it plans to gain advantages for decades stemming from major Chinese investments. What is obvious is that these investments are not going to wait much longer. They can be also made in other countries and regions within a regional competition environment.
