On Friday, 2 June 2017, the Alternate Minister of National Defence, Dimitrios Vitsas, welcomed in the Ministry of National Defence the Portuguese Deputy Minister of Defence, Marcos Perestrello, within the framework of his official visit to Greece.

The welcoming ceremony and subsequent talks were also attended by the Minister of Shipping and Island Policy, Panaghiotis Kouroumblis, the Chief of National Defence General Staff, Admiral Evangelos Apostolakis, HN, the Chiefs of General Staff and the Chief of the Hellenic Coast Guard.

The briefing was followed by statements:

The Portuguese Deputy Minister of Defence, Marcos Perestrello, stated the following:

“The Greeks can not be left alone to guard the European border.  They can not be left alone at the military level, at the coast guard level, and Greece can also not be left alone in meeting the goals set by Europe.

It is time to stop putting pressure on Greece and accept that one can not keep setting new milestones. Otherwise, we will come to a situation where it will be impossible to meet the final goal. It will be a situation like the myth of Sisyphus, and we can not accept this. Sisyphus is a Greek myth that well explains that once a milestone is reached, one can not set a new one.

I would like to stress, on behalf of the Portuguese government, that we stand by Greece in its mission to guard the border. We also stand by Greece in its effort within the EU to meet the goals we must all meet.

Answering to a question on Turkish violations, the Portuguese Deputy Minister stated:

“In NATO we are all allies and must find a way to deal with this. Violations of International Law are not acceptable and we do not accept these violations. It should be made clear that this is the traditional position of the Portuguese government. Always abide by International Law. This is our official position regarding all International Law violations”.

The Alternate Minister of National Defence, Dimitrios Vitsas, stated:

“We have an excellent co-operation with Portugal and its government. Portugal fully responded to the assistance we requested in order to deal with the refugee and migration issue. At the same time, we follow the same policy at EU level in a series of matters, such as the migration issue. On the other hand, in Athens, as well as in Lisbon and Madrid, we are building a new effort for Europe, where the focus will be on the survival and growth of the peoples and not on the pursuit of profit by the elites and the banks.

So we have many points in common. Portugal was a country that signed an MoU. It is a country, just like Greece, that tries to find and develop its European participation and its European sovereignty.

This is the second time we meet with the Deputy Minister of Defence; the first time was in Lisbon. We have many things to discuss and even more and important areas where we can co-operate, not only in Defence, but also in a series of other matters.

Answering to a journalist’s question on the stance of Turkey, the Alternate Minister stated:

“It is a positive development that more and more governments, and this is something that we expected from the Portuguese government, come to realise that the Greek border is also the European border and that defending the Greek border is defending the European border.

It is the fixed position of the Greek government, and I think the Portuguese government, that all matters related to this region, as well as the entire world, must be governed by International Law and the International Treaties and we can not back down from these.

In this sense, as we always say in the Ministry of National Defence, we want peace and work towards peace, but we will also continue to calmly, soberly, and decisively deal with all matters related to our national sovereignty. We will continue in the international fora and our international contacts, but even more so, we will continue in terms of the readiness level of our Armed Forces”.

The Minister of Shipping and Island Policy, Panaghiotis Kouroumblis, stated:

“We share with the Portuguese people and the Portuguese government the same vision for a Europe of true solidarity, a Europe of social justice, a Europe of collective growth. The statement of my friend, the Portuguese Deputy Minister, was exactly on the matters of the Greek economy.

The government decided and passed all these measures, drinking from this bitter cup, in order to finally close this cycle of constant demands for measures. Now the responsibility lies with those who until now said that Greece does not do this and does not do that. There must be an end to this torture so that Greece can work towards progress and growth.

Today we discussed the Coast Guard matter and our Portuguese friends watched a shocking video featuring the great efforts made by the Coast Guard and the Police in order to deal with these problems that are not ours – since Greece has never been a colonialist state and was never involved in the matters of the Middle East – and, in fact, without the help that most EU countries had been committed to provide.

So, I must recognise that Portugal fulfilled its commitments in full. I would like to say that this shocking video must be shown to all Europe so that some people can understand that Europe needs true solidarity and not some sort of “flexible” solidarity. So that they can understand who defends the European border. Because this is what it’s all about”.

Answering to a journalist’s question on the government potentially not being able to meet its debt goals, he stated:

“I do not want to speak hypothetically. I believe that it will be understood. It is concluded from the statements of many officials that this chapter must be closed and take a different path in order to stabilise the economy, enter into the quantitative easing programme, be able to borrow from the markets, and finally get out of this guardianship and MoU situation.

This is the position of the Greek government and I hope and believe that this will be understood – even at the last hour”.