Athens, the little black book of contacts in Washington

He's tough but I like him. This was the unequivocal response of then US President Donald Trump when Greece's Alexis Tsipras tried to raise the issue of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's recalcitrant postures and Turkish violations of Greek airspace in October 2017.

The former Greek Prime Minister's visit to the White House was previously considered a success, as it included the signing of the first truly significant defense agreement since Greece was placed under international financial trusteeship, for the modernization of 85 F-16 fighters. jets to the Viper version.

It was preceded by a period of intensive mobilization on the part of Nikos Kotzias, then Minister of Foreign Affairs, who had established contacts with the Trump team upon his accession to the presidency in early 2016. These contacts had in fact been instead of Trump. Tower in New York, where the team's headquarters were located.

Greek-Turkish relations experienced a rapid deterioration during the four years of Trump's presidency, which began in earnest following the attempted coup against Erdogan in July 2016. It is worth recalling that the aid offered by Russian President Vladimir Putin to his Turkish counterpart at that time, time essentially led to the cooperation and understanding that evolved between the two leaders in the years that followed. The coup attempt also amplified Erdogan's suspicions of the Americans.

Besides the mutual affinities between Trump and Erdogan, Ankara's strategic decision to purchase the S-400 missile defense system from Russia earned it a red card from the United States, with Trump signing the letter expelling Turkey of the F-35 program, although it is one of these systems. countries that had been part of it since its creation (Joint Strike Fighter). It should be noted that Turkey was to receive 100 F-35s, and at the time of its expulsion, Turkish pilots were already training on the first six aircraft.

The Pyatt Factor

Meanwhile, Greek-American relations evolved independently of these developments. The U.S. Ambassador to Greece at the time, Geoffrey Pyatt, a veteran diplomat with extensive experience in the U.S. State Department, played a leading role in this effort. He created a channel of communication between Athens and the American administration that proved invaluable on several occasions. Indeed, the two sides came close to signing a multi-year mutual defense cooperation agreement several times during the SYRIZA administration, but it appears that Tsipras, wary of possible reactions from the far-left faction of the ruling party, backed away .

The change of government in Athens in July 2019, from a left-wing to a conservative government, did not significantly change the situation, and two serious crises broke out between Greece and Turkey while Trump was still in power: the migratory surge in Evros and the tension in the eastern Mediterranean. It should be noted that when this latest crisis triggered by the movements of the Turkish seismic vessel Oruc Reis erupted, Athens was in the process of negotiating a partial agreement to delimit the exclusive economic zone with Cairo, with the blessing of Washington, which had been informed of the agreement, unlike Berlin. Additionally, as the Oruc Reis crisis persisted, albeit less intense, then-US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo visited the Souda Naval Base on Crete in September 2020 and was received by Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis in his ancestral home. in Hania.

The return of trump

Trump's re-election as US president last week places Greek-Turkish relations in a period of calm, Mitsotakis in a dominant political position and Greek-American relations in a very strong period.

How does Athens plan to develop even better contacts with a Republican Party almost unrecognizable from Trump's first term in power? Things are much simpler in foreign policy than we imagine. As Konstantinos Mitsotakis liked to say, personal relationships are the best diplomacy, a government official told Kathimerini, referring to the late conservative prime minister and father of the current prime minister, to explain the lines along which the administration of Athens plans its strategy.

A key element of this strategy is the personal relationship between Mitsotakis and Pompeo, who is expected to take on an important position in the new administration in Washington. The recent and highly symbolic meeting between the two men in a restaurant in Athens was a reminder of this relationship. But Pompeo is not the only one, notes the same source, indicating that Maximos Mansion plans to mobilize all the communication channels already established behind the scenes with the Republican Party.

The Greek-American community has always played an important role in relations between the two countries, and Greece is fortunate to still have people of Greek origin in the House of Representatives. This is also the case today, after the election of six Greek-Americans, including three Republicans: Gus Bilirakis, Mike Haridopolos, new to Congress, and Nicole Malliotakis. Bilirakis and Malliotakis are known for defending Greek interests, while the former, a member of the House since 2007, has often raised the issue of Turkish aggression.

The lobby

The Greek-American lobby, which plays an active role in every election campaign, has worked much more concertedly in recent years, providing a stable bridge between the Greek government and the United States. In fact, in this election he did not attempt to influence voters one way or another and supported all Greek-American candidates equally, regardless of which party they represented . Endy Zemenides is a key figure in this lobby and has close ties to the Greek government.

Government sources point out that all US laws passed by Congress in recent years that were of interest to Greece had bipartisan support.

The Greek-American lobby, which plays an active role in every election campaign, has worked much more concertedly in recent years, thus constituting a stable bridge

Three other officials with whom the Greek side maintains ties are Marco Rubio, once a staunch critic of Trump and now a close ally who is expected to take an important position in the new administration; Mike Johnson, Speaker of the House of Representatives, whom Mitsotakis met during his trip to Washington in July; and Jim Risch, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee with a tough stance on Turkey. Finally, the Greek government's contact list also includes two other people who have Trump's ear: Jamie Dimon, the CEO of JP Morgan, and Howard Lorber, who acquired Greek citizenship in 2020 and is among the 50 men richest Greek-American businessmen. .

Quiet diplomacy

Beyond all these different avenues of contact, official diplomatic channels are also silently at work.

Greek Deputy Foreign Minister Alexandra Papadopoulou is due to visit the United States on November 22. This visit has been planned for some time, knowing that the US elections will take place in the meantime with the aim of negotiating with the state. Department in the perspective of Greece becoming a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council for the 2025-2026 term. In addition to serving as Greece's ambassador to the United States from 2019 to 2023, Papadopoulou has extensive knowledge of U.S. affairs dating back to her early days in the diplomatic corps. Among others, she maintains regular contact with Jim Risch, the top Republican on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

The Greek government's good contacts with the House were also evident a few weeks ago when a group of Republican congressmen and senators were hosted by Mitsotakis at his home in Crete and visited several ministries in Athens.

Of course, while all of these connections are extremely useful, no one can predict who Trump will ultimately choose for his administration. However, if Mike Pompeo is chosen as Defense Secretary, as has been rumored for some time, this will make things much easier for Athens, at least as far as contacts are concerned, since defense and security are the main concerns. concrete. aspects of Greek-American relations.

Athens also has good communication channels at different levels with Robert O'Brien, who was the last national security advisor of the first Trump presidency, in office in 2019-2021, and who had his full confidence, unlike his predecessors (like John Bolton). . It is worth noting that US media reports suggest that O'Brien is among those (along with Marco Rubio) being considered for the State Department, while one of the names being heard for the national security adviser post is by Richard Grenell, a close friend of Trump. associate and former United States Ambassador to Germany. Another person with whom Athens maintains diplomatic contacts is Elbridge Colby, who was deputy secretary of defense in the first Trump administration.