Athens – Rubio: Greece an important ally of the U.S.

ATHENS, October 6 /ATSH-ANA/ – U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is expected to arrive in Athens today, where he will lead the American delegation at the sixth round of the Greece-U.S. Strategic Dialogue.

Rubio described Greece as a very important ally of the United States.

Asked about the stops on his European tour, Greece and Portugal, Rubio emphasised the military and economic dimensions of Greek-American relations.

According to him, the U.S. not only has a military presence in Greece, but also strong economic ties.

“The visit creates an important opportunity for contacts”, he stressed.

The main proceedings of the Strategic Dialogue will take place on Wednesday, October 7, at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Greece.

According to diplomatic sources, Greek Foreign Minister George Gerapetritis will hold a bilateral meeting with his American counterpart.

At the working sessions, which will be attended by senior officials from both countries, security, defence, energy, maritime transport, technology, trade and investment will be discussed, as well as strengthening the ties between the two peoples.

As part of the Dialogue, three cooperation agreements and documents are expected to be signed.

The Memorandum of Cooperation will be renewed on imposing import restrictions on categories of archaeological and ethnological material dating up to the 15th century AD.

Greece and the U.S. will also sign a Letter of Intent on cooperation between the Greek Armed Forces and the Florida National Guard.

Finally, a Memorandum of Understanding will be signed on the mutual recognition of seafarers’ Certificates of Competency, within the framework of the 1978 International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers (STCW).

In recent years, cooperation between the two countries has expanded in fields such as defence, energy, infrastructure and digital technology.

Greece’s participation in the “Artemis” agreements for cooperation in space in 2024, as well as in the “Pax Silica” initiative in 2026, which aims to coordinate investment in high-technology and artificial intelligence infrastructure, have been considered among the important moments of this cooperation. /a.jor.