FIRST REPUBLIC

A slim but solid majority of Greek MPs, 153 out of a total of 300 in Parliament, on Friday evening approved of a protocol for the accession of the former…

Former Greek prime minister Costas Karamanlis (2004-2009) on Thursday removed any doubts over his stance regarding the contentious Prespa agreement, which comes up for ratification in Greece’s Parliament later in…

By L. Karageorgos [email protected] Arrivals by citizens of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (fYRoM) to Greece have dropped, from an all-time high of 3.023 million in 2015, to 1.031…

A highly expected draft bill containing the Prespa agreement was tabled in Parliament over the weekend, with political party representatives to convene on Monday at noon to discuss the schedule…

Russian President Vladimir Putin received visiting Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras as the Kremlin on Friday, three and a half years after the latter last met him in Moscow and…

An ExxonMobil-contracted drillship, the Stena IceMax, arrives on Monday at the Cypriot port of Limassol on Monday ahead of scheduled hydrocarbon exploration in “Block 10” of the Republic of Cyprus’…

High-profile proposals for constitutional revision in Greece were again unveiled by Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras this week, with general elections now less than a year away and roughly two…

Former foreign minister Nikos Kotzias on Monday evening underlined that he “neither blackmails nor can be blackmailed,” speaking at an event in the Cretan city of Irakleio organized by the…

A cordial handover ceremony took place at the Greek foreign ministry in Athens on Saturday morning, as resigned minister Nikos Kotzias greeted his successor, none other than Prime Minister Alexis…

In a brief televised statement outside his office on Wednesday afternoon, Greek PM Alexis Tsipras first thanked resigned foreign minister Nikos Kotzias and then reiterated that his decision to assume…

By G. Kampourakis [email protected] A high-ranking government source told “N” on Monday that a landmark agreement to resolve the fYRoM “name issue” will first be ratified by Greece’s Parliament before…

Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras reportedly spoke by phone late Sunday evening with his counterpart in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (fYRoM), Zoran Zaev, hours after the polls closed…

Greece’s foreign ministry reacted cautiously on Sunday to the result of a same-day referendum in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (fYRoM) over a provisional agreement to resolve the long-standing…

By S. Emmanuil [email protected] The Athens-based Vivartia group this week announced that it aims to operate 22 stores – mostly under its Goody’s Burger House and Flocafe Espresso Room brands…

The Marshall Islands (RMI) registry and Green Award last week announced their cooperation, whereby the registry will provide GA-certified ships with a 30-percent discount on annual marine services fee. The…

By V. Vegiri [email protected] Priorities on a coming “to do” list by the east Mediterranean country’s privatization agency reportedly include the Egnatia motorway that crosses the breadth of northern Greece…

The prime minister of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (fYRoM), Zoran Zaev, told MEPs at the European Parliament on Thursday that his country’s “faith in Europe is one of…

By K. Deligiannis  [email protected] An international tender to sell-off Public Power Corp.’s (PPC) lignite-fired units in the Peloponnese and northwest Greece, along with the mines that provide lignite deposits, continues…

One of Greece’s most prominent businessmen, Greek-Russian investor Ivan Savvidis, this week categorically denied that he’s behind attempts to block a landmark agreement between Athens and the neighboring former Yugoslav…

A bilateral agreement resolving the long-standing “name issue” will reportedly be tabled in Greece’s Parliament for ratification after Jan. 15, 2019, as the constitutional revision in the neighboring former Yugoslav…

Outspoken Defense Minister Panos Kammenos, the head of a small right-wing party that props up the Tsipras government as the junior coalition partner, on Sunday left open the possibility of…

The coalition Greek government survived a ‘no confidence’ motion tabled by the main opposition New Democracy (ND) party in Parliament on Friday and voted on a day later, with a…

Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras has unveiled a “name issue” solution with the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (fYRoM) that entails a composite name with a geographic qualifier for the…

The legislative framework governing modern shipping is ever-changing and increasingly complex. Whether safety or environmental legislation, the challenge facing any shipowner/operator is to understand the detail of the legislation, ensure…

Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras travelled to the northern port city of Thessaloniki on Friday for a meeting with the city’s mayor, Yannis Boutaris, days after the latter was kicked…

Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Kotzias on Monday, speaking from Nicosia, referred to an effort by Turkey to legalize its “illegal demands”, namely, the unilateral presentation of maritime maps supposedly delineating…

The Hellenic Capital Market Commission (HCMC) on Monday, as expected, called on ASE-listed Folli Follie Group (FFG) to implement an independent audit of its 2017 results, days after a report…

Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Kotzias called the capture of two Greek servicemen nearly two months ago, after allegedly straying over the Turkish border, an “unprecedented incident … whereby two officers…

The United States supports efforts to resolve the “name issue” between Greece and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (fYRoM), a Pentagon spokeswoman said in Washington on Tuesday, while adding…

“Greece is a great nation, one that we Europeans owe a great deal; Greece is one of the axes of stability in the Balkans,” EU Commission President said during his…

Main opposition New Democracy (ND) party’s lead over ruling SYRIZA in the latest opinion poll, published on Saturday, reaches 13 percentage points, a widening figure even among the last batch…

The board of Greece’s privatization agency (HRADF), in tandem with Hellenic Petroleum S.A. (Hel.Pe), on Monday unsealed improved financial offers for a majority stake of the country’s state-run natural gas…

The Greek coalition government’s junior partner, right-wing Defense Minister Panos Kammenos, on Tuesday again expressed his small populist party’s opposition to use of the term “Macedonia” in any solution to…

Greece-based Erma First over the weekend opened a branch office in the major Korean port city of Busan, with a relevant ceremony attended by the company’s Korean representatives (Magna Mare),…

By T. Igoumenidi [email protected] Approximately 284 million euros will flow into Greek state coffers from the sale of 5 percent of telecoms provider OTE’s share capital, assuming that Deutsche Telekom…

The first official reaction by a top Turkish government official vis-a-vis the still unresolved case of two Greek servicemen being held in Turkey for allegedly straying into that country’s border…

Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras briefed main opposition New Democracy (ND) leader Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Saturday over the resumed negotiations this month between Athens and Skopje to finally solve the…

By G. Kampourakis [email protected] Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras referred to the building of a “national position” regarding the resurrected fYRoM “name issue” negotiations, speaking before his briefing of Greece’s…

A closely watched meeting between Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras and his counterpart from the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (fYRoM), Zoran Zaev, on Wednesday served as the pinnacle of…

A government spokesman on Monday warned against what he called “extreme nationalist outbreaks”, in a first official response to a large protest rally in Thessaloniki a day earlier, organized to…

Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras on Friday spoke by phone with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, as the latter briefed the Greek leader over his visit to the former Yugoslav…

A briefing was held on Tuesday at the relevant shipping ministry on the course of 10 state-owned port authorities transferred to the privatization fund’s (HRADF) portfolio, with the first highlight…

By N. Malliara [email protected] A looming resumption of auctions of foreclosed properties in the country along with pending sales of blocs of non-performing loans (NPLs) to distress funds within the…

Greek lender Piraeus Bank on Thursday announced an agreement with J.C. Flowers & CO (JCF) to sell the latter its share capital in a Romanian subsidiary, Piraeus Bank Romania S.A.…

The Greek government issued a “non-paper” hours after Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras received Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan at his office in Athens, shortly after the outspoken Turkish leader’s direct…

The foreign minister of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (fYRoM), Nikola Dimitrov, on Tuesday said a planned meeting with his Greek counterpart Nikos Kotzias next month, in the presence…

Greece’s privatization fund, the Hellenic Republic Asset Development Fund (HRADF), on Monday launched two separate international public tenders for concessions, the first for the Athens-area Alimos marina and a second…

By V. Kostoulas [email protected] The prospect of securing EU funding and a “better understanding” between Cyprus and Turkey are judged as significant factors for achieving the construction of the East…

Main opposition New Democracy (ND) leader Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Monday took exception to a recent quip by Eurogroup chairman Jeroen Dijsselbloem calling for elections in Greece to be held in…

A long-awaited energy exchange is expected to be established in Greece in the first half of 2018, with four separate markets eyed for trade in electricity, including “next-day” sales, spot…