The Agora

Nikos Androulakis has been re-elected as leader of PASOK, the centre-left party that is hoping to establish itself as the main opposition party in Greece and, ultimately, challenge centre-right New Democracy for power.

Given that Androulakis cruised to his victory, was there any point to this leadership contest? Also, where does it leave PASOK as it seeks to take advantage of turmoil at leftist SYRIZA and build some momentum as the social democrats seek to close the gap on Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis?

MacroPolis co-founder Yiannis Mouzakis and features editor Georgia Nakou join host Nick Malkoutzis to work out what has happened and what might happen.

Useful reading

Androulakis Wins Second Chance to Revive Greece’s Centre-Left Party - Balkan Insight 

Androulakis’ last chance - Kathimerini

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The Agora hosts a discussion on how Europe, and Greece specifically, have been handling the green transition, addressing questions like how the pivot away from natural gas is going.

The basis for our discussion is three articles written by MacroPolis features editor Georgia Nakou, and senior policy analyst and partner at The Green Tank, an Athens-based think-tank, Nikos Mantzaris.

The articles were published in English by MacroPolis, and in Greek by Inside Story. They were produced with the support of the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Athens as part of a climate journalism project.

Useful links

Is Greece on track to decouple from fossil gas? - By Nikos Mantzaris

Can the Green Transition be just? - By Nikos Mantzaris

From pipe dreams to power cables: the changing map of Greece's energy ambitions - By Georgia Nakou

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The European Parliament elections held in Greece on June 9 produced a few surprises, some of which could be significant for the country's political scene over the next few months and years.

The ruling centre-right party, New Democracy, performed worse than opinion polls had suggested and fell below the bar set by its leader, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis. The main opposition parties, leftist SYRIZA and socialist PASOK, had mixed nights but failed to make any major progress, raising questions about what the future holds for the Greek centre-left.

The far right appeared to be the major beneficiary of the voting patterns in these elections, but a closer inspection of the numbers tells a more complicated story.

MacroPolis co-founder Yiannis Mouzakis and features editor Georgia Nakou step into The Agora to discuss the twists and turns produced by this vote, which was marked by a record low turnout.

Useful reading

Greece’s centre-right wins but with heavy losses - Euractiv

Greek PM hints at cabinet reshuffle after EU vote disappointment - Reuters

Where did all the far-right votes in the EU, but also in Greece, come from? - Kathimerini

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Greece is preparing to welcome a record number of tourists again this year, but their visits will take place against a backdrop of growing concern among locals about the damage being done to the islands and their way of life by rapid development.

Greek policy makers face a dilemma over how to balance the growth and job creation provided by tourism, a vital industry for the local economy, against the fear that going down this path too fast and too far is ultimately unsustainable.

Journalist Yannis Palaiologos joins us on The Agora to discuss these issues. Yannis is part of the team behind the Sustainable Cyclades media project, which has been reporting on the impact that overtourism and development has been having on the Aegean islands and their residents.

Useful reading

Sustainable Cyclades

Local Greeks pushed out as mass tourism takes over Athens - France 24

'Without rules we cannot live’: Greece seeks ways to tackle ‘overtourism’ - Al Jazeera

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After going through a really difficult time during the country’s long economic crisis, the Greek property market is booming, but that's creating a whole new set of problems.

High rental and purchase prices are pricing out much of the local population as foreign investors snap up apartments and entire buildings in pursuit of profits.

Host Nick Malkoutzis is joined by Stelios Bouras, a journalist who covers real estate and other economic issues for the Business Daily, to discuss a range of issues linked to the new conditions in the housing market - rising prices, a revival of construction and the much-debated Golden Visa scheme.

Useful reading

Inside one of Europe’s last golden visa programmes and what’s set to change - EuroNews

Local Greeks pushed out as mass tourism takes over Athens - France24

What is driving the Greek housing market's recovery? - MacroPolis

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In the wake of the Covid pandemic, the European Union launched the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) - a package of around 700 billion euros to help member states recover from the economic impact and build for the future.

Greece's portion of these funds is considered vital for the country's efforts to overcome the effects of its long economic crisis, as well as the disruption caused by the pandemic.

The Greek government dubbed its RRF-related scheme "Greece 2.0", claiming it would help transform the country.

A couple of years in, how is Greece 2.0 performing? Has it had a transformative effect? How much money is Greece absorbing and where is it being invested?

These are some of the questions that Nick Malkoutzis and MacroPolis features editor Georgia Nakou attempt to answer in this episode.

Useful Reading

MacroPolis - Great Expectations: Is Greece 2.0 hitting the target?

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Phoebe and Nick are back to examine the contrasting images of Greece abroad and how they sit side by side.

A few months ago, rating agencies started to restore the investment grade for Greece's sovereign debt - more than a decade after it was lost. It was a reflection of the growing confidence that markets have in the political situation, the government's policy choices and the country's prospects.

However, while this has been happening, there has been growing concern about the rule of law and effectiveness of justice in Greece. There have been several debates about these issues in the European Parliament, while rights groups have also raised the alarm.

The Agora spoke to Wolfango Piccoli, co-president of political risk advisory at Teneo, to discuss why investors feel they can trust Greece again and how this renewed faith can sit alongside the complaints about transparency and accountability.

Useful links

Greece is investment grade again – why it matters to keep it - ESM

Parliament concerned about very serious threats to EU values in Greece - European Parliament press release

2023 Rule of Law Report - European Commission

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In February 2023, a freight train and a train carrying dozens of passengers crashed in Tempe, central Greece, killing 57 people. A year on from Greece's deadliest train accident, many questions remain unanswered and doubts are growing about whether the truth will ever come to light regarding what caused the disaster.

Opposition parties and relatives of the victims, many of whom were university students, feel that the Greek authorities are preventing a proper investigation into the incident, while also dodging their responsibility.

In fact, an opinion poll (Alco) published just after this episode was recorded indicated that 77 pct of Greeks feel there is a cover-up going on, while just 11 pct think there is no question of political responsibility.

Phoebe and Nick summarise what we know about the accident and its aftermath, while Nektaria Stamouli, Politico's Eastern Mediterranean correspondent and Kathimerini English Edition deputy editor, joins us on The Agora to discuss why there are such strong concerns about a cover-up and what implications this has.

Useful links

Trauma (audio documentary) - IMEdD

Greece rejected EU prosecutor’s call for action against 2 ex-ministers after rail crash - Politico

A year after Greece’s worst train disaster, railway safety fears persist - Reuters

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Five years ago SYRIZA was in power in Greece, but it is currently languishing in third place in the opinion polls and the nascent leadership of Stefanos Kasselakis is being constantly buffeted by internal disputes.

In this episode, Phoebe Fronista and Nick Malkoutzis set out how the left-wing party ended up in this uncomfortable position. Nick also speaks to MacroPolis co-founder Yiannis Mouzakis and features editor Georgia Nakou about Kasselakis's unusual approach and the recent stormy party conference, which almost resulted in another leadership contest.

Useful links

Kassalekis goes from blank canvas to empty vessel, blowing open progressive space - MacroPolis

The modern left for progressive governance - LSE Hellenic Observatory

Greece’s New Political Star Is a TikTok Creation - Wired

He’s Gone From Miami, to Celebrity, to Upending Greek Politics - New York Times

Greece’s main opposition party cracks up some more - Politico

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Phoebe Fronista and Nick Malkoutzis return after a prolonged absence to discuss what's behind Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis's political dominance in Greece and whether things are more complex than they look.

Their discussion was prompted by a piece Nick wrote recently for The Agora on MacroPolis's website after listening to Mitsotakis speak at the World Economic Forum in Davos, where the Greek PM shed light on the political strategy that has helped his centre-right New Democracy party comfortably see off its opponents.

As Nick and Phoebe discuss, this success cannot be separated from the Greek context because serious problems with the opposition, media and institutions have provided Mitsotakis with considerable assistance.

Useful reading

Rule of Law and Media Freedom in Greece - European Parliament

Stemming the Tide of Greek Media Freedom Decline - MFRR

Corruption Perceptions Index (Greece) - Transparency International

A Greek form of Triangulation - MacroPolis

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