Prime Minister Antonis Samaras will welcome in Athens today his Spanish counterpart, Mr. Mariano Rajoy. The two premieres will meet at 10.00 a.m. at the Maximos Mansion and then the two leaders are expected to make joint statements.

The meeting was arranged on Sunday in Paris, where the two leaders had traveled to attend the events against terrorism. According to El Pais newspaper, the real purpose of the meeting that takes place in the context of bilateral relations is to communicate the message that Mr. Rajoy supports the Greek Prime Minister in the upcoming general elections on January 25. It should be noted that Pablo Iglesias, the leader of Spain’s opposition Podemos party has already expressed his support for SYRIZA leader Alexis Tsipras, Mr. Samaras’ political opponent, urging voters to back him up.

The two Conservative Prime Ministers, who are currently facing similar problems, will discuss the political developments in their countries and in Europe. In their statements, they are expected to stress the need to strengthen the growth potential in the European Union by maintaining fiscal stability. Mr. Rajoy will probably recognize the progress made by Greece in the direction of overcoming the crisis and point out that the Greek people’s efforts must not be squandered.