Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis expressed his satisfaction with the de-escalation of tensions in the Middle East upon his arrival at the European Council meeting in Brussels, stressing that Greece supports every initiative that contributes to peace and stability in the region.

“We have an initial significant easing of tensions, and it is the duty of the Greek state to ensure that the reduction in crude oil prices is immediately translated into lower diesel and petrol prices at the pump, thereby benefiting all Greek consumers,” he said.

“The Greece welcomes the agreement and any initiative that will contribute to easing tensions. At this moment, the main priority is the restoration of freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, and we are closely monitoring oil and gas prices,” the Prime Minister stated.

Mr Mitsotakis also emphasised the impact of international developments on citizens’ daily lives, noting that the easing of crude oil prices must be directly reflected in fuel prices.

Referring to discussions on the next EU budget, the Prime Minister made clear that Greece will insist on maintaining the core of key European support policies.

“Greece, like many other countries, will fight to preserve the core of the two main instruments, namely Cohesion Policy and the Common Agricultural Policy,” he said.

At the same time, he stressed that the EU’s new Competitiveness Fund must operate in a way that does not widen inequalities between Member States.

“I will argue that the new Competitiveness Fund, which aims to support European businesses in the face of global competition, must be distributed fairly so as not to contribute to further economic divergence between stronger and weaker economies,” he noted.

The Prime Minister also referred to migration, expressing satisfaction with the increased funding allocated to it in the EU budget, while reiterating the need for common European financing tools for defence.

“Greece welcomes the fact that the migration budget is more robust. However, it will not stop persuading its partners that common financing tools for defence are required. Defence is a common European good and must be treated as such. This objective would be served much better if we could also add a European financing instrument to our capabilities,” Kyriakos Mitsotakis said.