Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis met with Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan at the Maximos Mansion in Athens on Thursday, emphasising the importance of strengthening strategic cooperation between Greece and the United Arab Emirates amid mounting regional tensions.

“It is a great pleasure, Your Highness, to welcome you here,” Mitsotakis said at the start of the meeting. “You are visiting at a time of major regional turmoil, but I believe this is precisely the right moment, and that it is essential, to strengthen our strategic cooperation, which has already delivered results.”

The Greek prime minister stressed that Athens attaches considerable importance to its partnership with Abu Dhabi and intends to use the visit to advance agreements between businesses from the two countries.

He also highlighted the broader geopolitical significance of their cooperation. “This is also an opportunity to review developments in the region and discuss how our two countries can work together as pillars of stability towards a more peaceful future that will benefit both our nations and the wider region,” Mitsotakis said.

The prime minister also referred to a candidacy for the position of United Nations Secretary-General, expressing Greece’s willingness to offer its support.

For his part, Sheikh Khaled welcomed the opportunity to deepen bilateral relations. “It is a great pleasure to be here. We are celebrating 50 years of diplomatic relations, which is a great honour for us,” he said. “I would like to thank you for the warm welcome, and I very much look forward to our discussions today.”

Visit amid heightened regional tensions

The crown prince’s visit takes place against a particularly sensitive geopolitical backdrop, following the ratification of the controversial Turkey-Libya maritime memorandum by Libya’s parliament.

Greece has strongly opposed the agreement, which Athens considers illegal under international maritime law, and has sought to mobilise diplomatic support through the European Union.

Countries including Egypt, Israel and Cyprus have also expressed objections to aspects of Turkey’s maritime claims in the Eastern Mediterranean.

Athens and Abu Dhabi have developed close economic and geopolitical ties over recent years, underpinned by a bilateral defence cooperation agreement that includes provisions for mutual military assistance.

The relationship has subsequently expanded into investment and business cooperation, with Emirati capital flowing into Greek companies and growing interest in several sectors of the economy.

The crown prince arrived in Greece on Wednesday and was welcomed at the airport by Foreign Minister Giorgos Gerapetritis.

He is accompanied by a sizeable business delegation of approximately 60 representatives, reflecting the economic significance of the visit.

New investment agreements and $10 billion construction initiative

Following their meeting, Mitsotakis and Sheikh Khaled are expected to attend the Greece-UAE Business Forum at Conrad Athens The Ilisian, where approximately 15 memorandums of understanding are scheduled to be signed in their presence.

According to earlier reporting by newmoney.gr, the main initiatives under discussion include a new three-year agreement between Abu Dhabi investment company Mubadala and the Hellenic Development Bank of Investments (HDBI), as well as plans for a Greek-Emirati construction consortium targeting projects worth up to $10 billion across the Middle East and North Africa.

Mubadala executives have been in Athens since Tuesday, holding meetings with Greek investment fund managers as part of the existing partnership with HDBI.

Their discussions have focused on continuing current investments and identifying new opportunities.

Beyond renewing the existing agreement, the two sides are exploring broader co-investment and financing arrangements involving financial institutions and investment organisations from both countries.

The objective is to create additional sources of funding for Greek businesses while supporting their expansion into international markets.

Greece’s sovereign investment vehicle, Growthfund, is also expected to assume a more active role in partnerships involving Emirati capital as it expands its international investment activities.

Greek and Emirati construction groups target projects in third countries

One of the most significant initiatives being prepared involves establishing a consortium of Greek and Emirati construction companies to jointly bid for major infrastructure projects across the Middle East and North Africa.

According to economic diplomacy sources, the potential portfolio of projects could reach $10 billion.

The figure refers to projects that the consortium may seek to secure, rather than contracts already awarded.

The Emirati delegation includes National Projects & Construction, part of the Trojan Group.

On the Greek side, companies expected to participate in the discussions include Archirodon, associated with the Karpidas family, which has an established track record in major construction projects across the Middle East.

For Greek construction groups, the proposed partnership could provide an opportunity to combine their technical expertise and experience in large-scale infrastructure projects with the strong regional presence and financial resources of Emirati companies.

The initiative would also mark an expansion of Greek-Emirati business cooperation beyond investment projects located in Greece.

Energy, artificial intelligence and data centres

Energy remains a central pillar of bilateral economic cooperation, increasingly linked to digital infrastructure and artificial intelligence.

The presence in Athens of representatives from Emirati energy companies Masdar and ADNOC, alongside Greek groups including TERNA Energy and the Copelouzos Group, underlines the sector’s continued importance.

Potential areas of cooperation range from energy infrastructure and lower-carbon technologies to projects designed to meet the growing electricity requirements of digital facilities.

The expansion of artificial intelligence applications and data centres is expected to generate substantial demand for power, creating opportunities for cooperation between energy providers, technology companies and infrastructure developers.

A significant proportion of the memorandums under preparation concerns artificial intelligence infrastructure, environmentally sustainable data centres and the application of emerging technologies in public administration and education.

Other proposed initiatives cover data analytics, digital services and communications technology.

The composition of the Emirati delegation reflects this focus.

Alongside MGX, the investment company established with the involvement of Mubadala and G42, representatives from several major technology businesses have travelled to Athens.

They include G42, Presight, which specialises in big data analytics, and Core42, a provider of cloud computing and artificial intelligence infrastructure.

The breadth of the delegation highlights the expanding scope of the Greece-UAE strategic partnership, which now extends from traditional energy and infrastructure investments to advanced digital technologies.

For Athens, the visit offers an opportunity to consolidate its relationship with a major Gulf investment partner while strengthening diplomatic ties at a time of significant uncertainty in the Eastern Mediterranean and the wider Middle East.