Farantouris: Greece Must Assert a Strong Role in the Middle East to Safeguard Its Interests

Speaking to ERT News, European Parliament member and Security and Defense Committee member Nikolas Farantouris emphasized that Greece “must clearly and decisively claim a strong role in the Middle East to protect its interests and Orthodox populations.”

“Greece must loudly declare, ‘We are here,’ for peace, reconstruction, and the protection of Orthodox Christians and all people in Gaza and the broader region,” Farantouris said ahead of today’s historic peace meeting in Egypt, attended by President Trump.

“I am cautiously optimistic and hope peace endures. Greece must finally step forward. We have the strongest—centuries-old and millennia-spanning—historical, cultural, and religious ties with the region and its peoples, both Israeli and Palestinian, more than any other country in the world. Moreover, we have Orthodox Christians and the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem. We can and should actively contribute to peace and stability,” he stated.

Countering Turkey’s “Strategic Encirclement”

Farandouris highlighted that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan will attend the Egypt meeting “upgraded and publicly praised by President Trump,” who credited him for contributing to peace efforts.

“There is only one way to counter neo-Ottomanism and Turkey’s ‘strategic encirclement’ of Greece—which extends from Palestine to North Africa and Libya: Greece’s robust presence wherever its interests, Orthodox populations, Greek Orthodox Patriarchates, and holy sites, such as Saint Catherine’s Monastery in Sinai, are at stake—from Syria to Egypt and Palestine,” the Greek MEP said.

Inaction Harms

“In international relations and geopolitics—whether dealing with friends or foes, allies or adversaries—inaction is detrimental,” stressed the Greek MEP and university professor. “To be credible, we must be proactive and assertive in defending our national interests. Eleftherios Venizelos once said, ‘My interlocutors only understand when I speak of my homeland’s interests.’ We, too, have interests in the Eastern Mediterranean. When we fail to defend them, we weaken ourselves, both against adversaries and allies.”

Farandouris also referred to the Greece–Cyprus electrical interconnection (cable) and the EastMed natural gas pipeline, proposed three years ago. “Abandoning such projects sends the wrong message. It signals that we are not ready to defend our interests. Retreat, inaction, and isolationism have never benefited international relations,” the MEP concluded.