Greek PM Condemns Russia’s Invasion to Ukraine in UN Speech

Greek PM Mitsotakis gave a message of hope to the international community against the threat of Russia in his address to the UN General Assembly in New York on Friday.

In his speech to the UN, Mitsotakis said: “We don’t want a world in which power is for the strong state and not for the weak and where disputes are settled by generals rather than diplomats.”

He added that “Russia’s invasion must not succeed. Not only for the sake of Ukraine but also because it is imperative to send a clear message to other authoritarian leaders that open acts of aggression which violate international law shall not be tolerated by the global community of democratic states.”

In the midst of unprecedented crises across Europe, Mitsotakis highlighted Greece’s role as, first of all, a pillar of stability and security in the region and, secondly, as a reliable partner and ally to the EU. He mentioned Greece’s role as a strategic hub for Europe’s energy security and as an attractive investment destination.

“Russia has weaponized its natural resources to cause pain [to] European societies and destabilize democratically elected European governments,” he said, and added that “again, it will not succeed. We will support our citizens [in coping] with high energy prices. We will pool European resources to promote energy efficiency and rapidly diversify away from Russian oil and natural gas.” UN

Russia supplied nearly forty percent of Europe’s gas before the war with Ukraine, and the bloc has since attempted to reduce dependence on fuel from the country. This has come in the form of sanctions and partial bans against Russian gas and fuel in the EU, as well as attempts to source fuel from other countries. As a response, Russia completely cut off supply to Bulgaria, Denmark, Finland, the Netherlands, and Poland and reduced flows via major pipelines.

Russia has weaponized its natural resources to cause pain on European societies and destabilize democratically elected European governments. It will not succeed. We will support our citizens to cope with high energy prices. #UNGA

— Prime Minister GR (@PrimeministerGR) September 23, 2022

The Greek PM maintained that “we will further accelerate the push towards renewables, which are not just the cleanest and cheapest form of energy but also the safest ones from a geopolitical perspective.”

Ending his remarks on Russia, Mitsotakis said, ”Never again must we mortgage our property, only to be blackmailed by those who are willing to exploit our dependencies. This is, after all, what European strategic autonomy is all about. We know that there is a price to be paid for being on the right side of history. And it is our obligation to keep our societies untied but also informed about what is really at stake in Ukraine.”