Politics

In a political system plagued by accusations of corruption and cronyism, few Greek ministers can claim to be controversy-free. But the new minister for migration and asylum, Makis Voridis, is in a league of his own. Back in the 1980s, he led the youth wing of a fascist party founded by Greece’s former dictator Georgios Papadopoulos. There’s even a photograph of Voridis wielding an axe against leftist students. Voridis first came to prominence in 2014 when he was appointed health minister, and people cottoned on to his ultra-nationalist links. Then in 2023 he made headlines for saying that, if it came to a vote, he wouldn’t support same-sex marriage. And so the prime minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, put him in charge of helping refugees. It was partly a response to the protests in March, ...

Greek political culture has always been marked by a deep-rooted skepticism toward monarchy. Credit: Sodacan, Wikimedia Commons, Public Domain. Unlike cultures that historically revered their monarchies as near-divine or untouchable figures, Greeks have consistently insisted that their leaders remain grounded, accessible, and subject to scrutiny. The more one studies Greek history, the clearer it becomes: Greece has always approached politics differently than most nations, whether in the East or the West. Central to this difference is a unique relationship with authority. Ancient roots: Leadership as a civic duty A gold Mycenaean death mask, named “the mask of Agamamnon.” Credit: Sharon Mollerus / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY 2.0 Greek attitudes toward leadership stretch back to deep antiq...

The Greek Government has partnered with Sword Health for an AI-driven healthcare initiative, covering more than ten million citizens.This initiative is claimed to place Greece among the early adopters of such systems in Europe.The collaboration initially aims to integrate AI support into the new National Health Information Line (1566), which acts as the initial point of contact for individuals seeking assistance in managing their healthcare.Through the incorporation of AI in coordination and triage, the Greek Ministry of Health intends to provide consistent support across various regions, increase capacity, and enhance response times while fostering adaptability during times of elevated demand.Sword Intelligence, the company’s AI care management division, will lead the work.The technology ...

he international community is holding its breath as it follows developments in the Middle East. The sudden escalation in tensions between Israel and Iran has raised concerns among leaders across the broader region—especially Mediterranean countries—over fears of an unpredictable domino effect.Alarm in Athens over Middle East flare-upThis development prompted Kyriakos Mitsotakis to cut short his trip to Sweden and return immediately. Yesterday afternoon, the Government Council for Foreign Affairs and Defense (KYSEA) held an emergency meeting at the Maximos Mansion focusing exclusively on the Middle East crisis.According to sources, the meeting involved an assessment of the latest developments.Foreign Ministry ResponseForeign Minister George Gerapetritis provided an update on the situation i...

Tens of thousands of people gathered in Athens in a demonstration to mark the second anniversary of a rail accident that killed 57. Greek riot police deployed tear gas and stun grenades to disperse a smaller group of protesters throwing Molotov cocktails and stones. Protesters have alleged that the government was involved in a cover-up of evidence, slowing down investigations into the crash.Hundreds of thousands of people demanded justice for the 57 people killed when a passenger train collided with a freight train in 2023Image: Aristidis Vafeiadakis/ZUMAPRESS.com/picture alliance What do we know about the protest? Over 170,000 people attended the protest in Athens, and some 325,000 people in total took to the streets nationwide, according to police. A total of 5,000 police officers ...

Former US President Barack Obama privately warned Greece’s then-Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras in 2015 that a powerful bloc inside the EU was pushing for the country’s removal from the Eurozone, according to Tsipras’ newly published memoir. The revelations have jolted Greek politics and reopened debate over how the 2015 debt crisis was handled. Ithaca – named after Odysseus’ island, a symbol long-awaited homecoming – recounts the dramatic months surrounding the bailout standoff, the referendum and the negotiations that split both Europe and Greece. The book’s release on Monday comes amid speculation that Tsipras, who resigned from parliament in October, may be preparing a political comeback. Pre-order figures reportedly exceeded those of Harry Potter in Greece. A letter fr...

Greece’s former prime minister Alexis Tsipras on Monday released a long-awaited memoir, 10 years after the trauma of the country’s debt crisis, as he reportedly mulls a political comeback. The ex-Communist youth leader, who came to power in 2015 as an anti-austerity firebrand at the head of the left-wing Syriza alliance, was forced to negotiate a multi-billion-dollar rescue with Greece’s EU-IMF creditors. Now 51, he has said he felt an “obligation” to “recount the events as I experienced them, to capture the conditions, the conflicts, the dilemmas, and the cost”. “It is time for my voice to be heard,” he said in a statement this month. The memoir – an epic 730 pages – is titled “Ithaki”, the Ionian island also known as Ithaca, where Tsipras in 2018 emphatically declared Greece’s exit from ...

Secondary school teachers in Greece are set to go through an intensive course in using artificial intelligence tools as the country assumes a frontline role in incorporating AI into its education system.This week, staff in 20 schools will be trained in a specialised version of ChatGPT, custom-made for academic institutions, under a new agreement between the centre-right government and OpenAI.“We have to accept that AI does not exist in a parallel universe. It is here,” the education minister, Sofia Zacharaki, said ahead of the pilot programme launch.The initiative, which is to be expanded nationally in January, makes Greece one of the first countries to pioneer the use of generative AI in the classroom.Workshops will initially focus on teachers mastering the new technology to assist lesson...

Greece's former prime minister Alexis Tsipras on Monday released a long-awaited memoir, 10 years after the trauma of the country's debt crisis, as he reportedly mulls a political comeback.The ex-Communist youth leader, who came to power in 2015 as an anti-austerity firebrand at the head of the left-wing Syriza alliance, was forced to negotiate a multi-billion-dollar rescue with Greece's EU-IMF creditors.Now 51, he has said he felt an "obligation" to "recount the events as I experienced them, to capture the conditions, the conflicts, the dilemmas, and the cost"."It is time for my voice to be heard," he said in a statement this month.The memoir -- an epic 730 pages -- is titled "Ithaki", the Ionian island also known as Ithaca, where Tsipras in 2018 emphatically declared Greece's exit from it...

South Melbourne FC hosted a distinguished pre-game VIP dinner on Saturday night ahead of the club’s match against NWS Spirit, bringing together political leaders, major sponsors, Greek Australian community figures and representatives from across Melbourne’s football scene. Held in the club’s VIP room, the event was attended by the full South Melbourne board, prominent financial supporters, officials from local Greek football clubs, former players, past administrators and members of the Greek Australian media. Among the political guests honoured with the historic South Melbourne jersey were Labor state MP Nina Taylor, Mayor of Port Phillip Alex Makin, and Victorian Labor MP Anthony Cianfione, who chairs the Victorian Parliament’s Friends of Football committee. The club’s Mai...