Prime Minister Antonis Samaras, accompanied by the Minister of Environment, Energy and Climate Change Yannis Maniatis, met this morning in Brussels with EU Energy Commissioner Günther H. Oettinger.

The meeting focused on energy security in Europe and ways to ensure it through diversification of supply routes and sources of energy. More specifically, the issues of the Trans Adriatic Pipeline and Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria were discussed, as they are of great importance for Greece.

Other topics discussed in the meeting include the interconnection of various European networks, particularly those of Southeast Europe (Greece, Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary) with the countries of the Visegrad Group and the exploration for hydrocarbon reserves in Greece, Cyprus and Israel.

The interest of the Greek side focused, inter alia, on the promotion of projects of common European interest, notably those related to the interconnection of existing networks.

These issues will be a priority in the “agenda” of the Greek Presidency in the Council of Ministers and will be the focus of discussions at the next summit, to be held in late June.

According to diplomatic sources, the meeting of Prime Minister Antonis Samaras and Minister Yannis Maniatis with the European commissioner was “constructive” and held “in a good atmosphere”