Greece fully supports the visionary project of the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEEEC) and aspires to be India’s natural gateway to Europe and beyond, Foreign Minister George Gerapetritis, who is on an official visit to India on February 6-7, said in an interview with “The Hindu” newspaper.
“Given our geostrategic position, our status as a regional energy hub and our leading position in global commercial shipping, we envision playing a vital role,” he added.
As he noted, “we also see IMEEC as more than just an economic corridor. It has a strong geostrategic component. And it has the potential to become a corridor of peace, stability and prosperity. This will significantly strengthen cooperation between the participating countries, healing the wounds in the wider region and helping us increase our solidarity and resilience to future challenges.”
Gerapetritis emphasised that “the ongoing crisis in the Middle East has delayed the planning of the project, but it should not undermine the rationale behind IMEEC. It is our determination – that of India, Greece and our intermediary partners – that will realise this vision of peace and prosperity.”
Greece, as the foreign minister pointed out, “welcomes the potential interest of Indian companies for investing in Greek ports, as we expect that this will lead to the modernisation and expansion of our country’s port infrastructure.” This, moreover, “is in line with Greece’s ambition to be the gateway of the pioneering IMEEC corridor to the European market,” he added.
Source: ANA-MPA
