The two leaders signed the new bilateral defense agreement between the two countries at the Maximou Mansion.
Earlier, the Prime Minister and the French President had the following dialogue:
Kyriakos Mitsotakis: Mr. President, welcome again. First of all, I would like to thank you warmly, on behalf of all Greeks, for your statements yesterday and for your speech at the Presidential Palace. I believe that it really touched the hearts of all my compatriots and demonstrated the timeless bonds of friendship between our two countries, which sometimes go beyond the agreements we sign.
Your visit sent a very clear message that what you said yesterday, “Greece – France, Alliance”, is an axiom towards which we will all work and we will continue to strengthen our cooperation. Again, welcome.
Emanuel Macron: Thank you, Prime Minister, dear Kyriakos. Thank you all. I am very happy and proud to be here with my ministers and my delegation.
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I think that obviously the friendship and the ties between the two countries are long-standing but I also think that we are transforming this relationship and from 2021, given the challenges we face, we are building a new broad partnership. It is indeed a global and strategic partnership. It will be about defence and security, obviously, but we will also sign up for other areas: energy, economy, culture, innovation. That’s why this relationship is important, both for your country, which is at the forefront in terms of some of the most important challenges for Europeans, but also for both of our countries.
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And I want to tell you that in my words yesterday I expressed a real commitment from France. You can count on us. Thank you.
