The term "Elite" is a pretty useless term.. in practice all it means is person with access that I don't like, as apposed to "man of the people" which is a person with access that I do like..
This family is the best example of politicians that preach of a "small state" and privatising everything while at the same time have made massive fortune funded by the state in various ways.
Well that was just European elections.. The weather was great on that day of elections, summer right at the beginning, and Greeks just chose to go to the beach instead of going to vote. Let's wait and see what his winning percentage will be in the next national elections in 2027 😊
@@markovalntobresci5714 Mitsotakis was won the sheeping herd of the "center", which is the typical non-political voters without the knokledge of what they actual want from a government. These people are the one that didn't go to vote on European elections. In the national elections they'll go again like stupid sheeps to vote again for the dynasty and again they'll reach the 40something%. Greece's political field is dead, the dynasty won and the people just don't give a fuck
@@vuzass πριν πεταξεις μια μαλακια πρεπει λιγο να βαλεισ το μυαλο σου να δουλεψει. Οριστε λοιπον (Beware of spelling! The present participle of lie is not lieing. The i becomes a y: lying. Here is a mnemonic to help you tell laying and lying apart: “If you tell an untruth, it is a lie, not a lay; and if you are in the process of telling an untruth you are lying, not laying.”)
Greece belongs to Greeks, not Mitsotakis. If Greeks want closed borders, then the borders will remain closed, no matter the crisis. Africa and Middle East is a whole Continent with billions of people. Fix your countries
Να μείνουν κλειστά τα σύνορα και για τους Έλληνες. Να μην μπορούν να φύγουν και όσοι έφυγαν να μην μπορούν να γυρίσουν. Να τους αφαιρεθεί και η υπηκοότητα και η ιθαγένεια και το δικαίωμα ψήφου.
That's right. People think that countries are obligated to take in everyone who manages to get in under the pretext of "fleeing poverty" These clowns don't understand that illegal immigration actual reinforces poverty.
First of all is there anyone that claims that Mitsotakis is the owner of Greece? We vote for him to manage our faiths and our lives because he is the only capable of doing so from the ones that ask for our votes. Secondly Greece has international obligations deriving from International Treaties. Closed borders is something that is close to impossible to implement in reality. Control of migration and selection of those migrants who are eligible to receive a asylum and those who are illegal is a way more realistic target.
30:45 There are NO Macedonians outside Greece! Period. Learn history or drop it altogerther. Macedonia, is a Greek name of a Greek territory for more than 2000 years. The Slavs of the state of Skopja were just barbarians at that time.
No, he cant be, how will he manage to be the prime minister of Greece and the emperor of mankind at the same time. Surely his swollyness Kyriakos delegates tasks.
My thoughts exactly! There is a suspicion going around about western powerful "allies" keeping this man and his regime in power. Me being from Greece and knowing his opposition I cant make a decision whether this a good thing for the people of this country or not (probably not!)
"Islanders in Greece are now trilled with the immigration issue and immigration is a no problem now !" "The economy has recovered from the crisis and the country is doing great !" "There is no freedom of speech and freedom of the press issue !" and so on and so forth . He is clearly disconnected from the Greek reality and spoke as if he was the PM of Sweden . That's populism
Greece stands tied for last place (with Hungary) in freedom of press in a recent Reuters institute research in 47 countries and 2nd to last in citizens satisfaction on how democracy works (78% dissatisfaction) and just below Colombia in a recent Pew research center poll across 31 countries around the world. If you want to know a little bit about a PM ask the people not the PM, especially when the PM is the product of nepotism. The Hagiography is intended to introduce him to foreign audiences since he's looking to jump to a senior European political role. Europe's better off without him and most certainly Greece is better off without him too too. That is the honest truth.Any Greek telling you otherwise is probably employed in some party political office. Plenty of those needed to keep such people in power especially in corrupt governments.
@@chrissnik forgot to mention also greece became last on bureaucracy complexity in the world in the business index, the most unpopular for business, and among the top in monopolies and cartels in the world accornding to OECD under the PMship of Mitsotakis. Also its citizens are now the second poorest in the EU and also working the most hours in Western countries. Of course like I said, those employed by regimes are happy nomatter what.
Immigration is an issue in Greece. Maybe not to the extent of Germany or Belgium (especially Muslim immigrants) but the face of the metropolitan cities has radically changed. There are areas that are no longer accessible to Greeks - who used to be posh, wealthy areas now totally ghettoed. Try walking around the Omonoia square without feeling scared. The big cities are suffering from an extreme rise in burglaries and crime, the majority of which is done by immigrants. PM Mitsotakis is not a saint, but he is the best the country can have at the moment.
@@intellectualninjamonkey2496 So you mean that Greece in a 11 milion population Mitsotakis is the smartest one and the best politician?Then that says a lot about Greece as a nation..
@@churchofsatanalbania1468no they just keep lying to get elected then scum us blame us the citizens for everything and take our money and leave while he fear monger us with COVID he was out taking a nice bath at the seas of our Islands hypocrite
@@churchofsatanalbania1468 smartest? What the hell "smartest" mens? This is a junior high school mentality. The right word is "effective". Mitsotakis is an effective manager of a public administration group of people, his cabinet. Just like a big business, the government doesn't need the .. smartest person in charge it needs an effective MANAGER in charge. A person who manages his ministers in an effective way. And how exactly we test who is smart and who is smarter anyway, we make the candidates take a math test?
@@intellectualninjamonkey2496Firstly 47% of the people didn't vote, so he got 41% of the 53% who voted so around 2,200,000 of 10,000,000 Greeks actually voted him so it's not like the majority of the Greek people want him. Secondly since when the majority is always right? So if the majority of the population thinks that jumping of a cliff is a good idea then we should do it? Btw jumping of a cliff is a better idea than voting the clown in the video.
He unfortunately also stands for all the things that are wrong with Geek politics: Elitist (a life completely removed from the life of ordinary Greeks from birth), nepotistic (dynastic politics are worse in Greece than in any other European country), unambitious inward and instead ambitious outward (it is more important to Geek elites to impress social circles in Paris or London than anyone in Athens) - and ultimately unpatriotic (I remember the time when Greeks were the biggest foreign buyers of apartments in Berlin during the Euro crises)
I love what he said about being present meeting people as PM. When I was about 8 my father was TV camera man, we bumped into NZs PM Helen Clarke in an elevator at the studio. She told me my dad was the best camera man in the country. And she really seemed like she believed it. Always kept that moment with me
He doesn't, that's a lie. One example: he refused to meet with families that they lost their loved ones in the last year s tragedy in Tempi (train collision).
As a Greek living in Britain (and fan of most of your podcasts on The Rest is Politics) I find the rehabilitation of Mitsotakis and Nea Dimokratia (his party) to be extremely concerning. You shouldn't take at face value a random comment on RUclips, but you also shouldn't take everything Mitsotakis says as the truth. Just because he frames himself as an American-educated, centrist and non-populist, it does not mean that it is the complete truth. The start of his political career was defined by the Siemens Scandal, when many Greek politicians were found (allegedly) to be accepting bribes and gifts from the German company Siemens. He leads a government that has been investigated by the UN for Human Rights violations regarding the treatment of refugees in the Aegean Sea. One of his first acts as Prime Minister was to restrict the independence of ERT (our BBC) and EYP (our intelligence agency) and a few years later spying software linked to one of his close associates was found on the phone of Androulakis (the leader of our Lib-Dem equivalent). He has placed very right-wing figures, like Thanos Plevris, Makis Voridis and Adonis Georgiadis in high ranking ministries and important positions within his party. He can claim to be a centrist (and legalising gay marriage is some evidence to that) but as leader of the oppisition he had attacked legislation that would have made changing genders easier for trans people and attacked any attempts at seperating the Orthodox Church from the State. The economy is being transformed into a gig-economy for Greeks based around services and tourism, while incetivising expats and wealthy foreigners to come to Greece (and pay very little in tax). He has furthered the privatisation of the Public Electrcity Corporation, which led to Greece having some of the highest energy prices in Europe for some time. His government have repeatedly refused to cooperate with or slowed down the investigation into the Tembi railway disaster, where around 60 people died in a crash on the busiest railway line in Greece (connecting Athens and Thessaloniki), allegedly the railworker unions had warned the government on several occasions about the unsafe conditions but they were ignored. There were several accusation of mishandling the pandemic by the government which led to some very high excess deaths especially in the rural regions of Greece (he also repeatedly broke the quarantine rules that his government had implemented).
I worked with a Greek and Cypriot. I heard a lot about there issues with how these countries are being used as tax havens within the EU, with large quantities of board members of top companies being given passports, especially in Cyprus where apparently any top exec at Amazon gets an EU passport no questions asked. Unfortunately any deep discussion about this is never going to happen while Greek has a PM toeing the EU narrative after how the previous administration went.
Greece also has one of the best performing economies in Europe thanks to his government. Privatisation and encouraging foreign investment is good and exactly what the Greek economy needs. Everyone knows what the state-owned enterprise and high tax policies did to Greece.
@@gabrieldsouza6541 all of that is fantastic. Now let’s move onto the atrocities being committed in the med. All that money sent to turkey, how is it spent? Within the uk the RNLI will assist any vessel stranded at sea. Hell I would bet they would even assist a Russian warship if the call came out and the navy couldn’t get there. Knowing there was a stricken vessel in the med, how can you coasts guards just point and go, oh look a not my problem? When does it become your problem, according to you? Can you think of a situation where it is ever appropriate to throw someone overboard? There are some incredibly serious accusations being levelled at the Greek PM right now and he’s come to do a fluff piece on RUclips about how great he is.
@@gabrieldsouza6541 Gig economy work isn't sustainable. While the numbers look geat now, in a decade when the boom is over the picture won't be nearly as rosey.
You are quite right, but this particular saying is often misunderstood, and is perhaps just badly phrased. The point of the phrase is, that if you eat your cake, you can no longer have it. You cannot both have your cake and eat it. The two propositions are mutually exclusive. Possess the cake, or eat the cake. Pick one. Now whether or not the phrase is used well here, isn't a hill I would choose to fight on :)
As an Englishman who’s learnt Spanish and French I’m always impressed about how eloquent people like this man are - learning another language is not simply about the practical nature of comprehension but a deeper and wider understanding of humanity. I think we as Brits could benefit from this - English being the lingua Franca is a double edged sword
Simply do not agree with this, if you think people learn English because of Britain is simply specious, the reason people speak English is because the USA speaks English and the media ...film, TV, and internet is in English (Unless you are Chinese), any intelligent and capable person who has ambition will speak English. Much better to consider his record rather than this sycophantic smooze by two redundant talking heads. I point you panpap5198, did they ask any hard or difficult questions ... of course they didn't.
@@andrewjohnston9115nobody’s saying he learns English because of Britain. They’re just saying it’s the Lingua Franca (common language) of international relations - this is partly because it’s the main language in the USA, and partly because of the british empire’s status as the hegemonic power during the 19th century.
Are you serious?! This person comes from the same family that has ruled Greek politics since forever. I am 50 years old and i never spend half a day without his family in power. All of his relatives are ex prime ministers, high ranking ministers and mayors of Athens!!! Are you kidding me?!! Mitsotakis equals nepotism!!! The nerve!! The hypocrisy!!!
Reporter said " i am feeling very very sorry for the Macedonians having to change their names etc " .... and the Prime Minister ... NOTHING, did he correct him, NO ... Good job PM
25:41 Having watched the BBC documentary ‘Dead Calm; Killing in the Med’, I think there needs to a reassessment of the comment ‘big fence and big door’. If putting vulnerable men, women and children forcibly into an raft with no motor and dumping them in the sea, with huge risk, on the Turkish side of the sea border is a consequence of Government policy then the policy is morally and legally indefensible.
@@mildlydispleased3221 Ah yes the usual troll farm account that says "WhY ArE YoU hErE iF u DonT LiKe It". Bozo he's a PM and just because u watch a video of him doesnt mean u have to agree with him. Logic fallacy muchos? Go get a real job miserable lowlife troll farm acc
The issue of press freedom is not a matter of not having the right to say or write whatever you want. It is a matter of a depended relationship between mainstream media and political parties. There is minimum investigative journalism here and that is because media owners, directors, journalists may be depended by bank loans that may be in turn depended by politicans, or have other economic ties that put media in the position of not wanting to harm the government, or status-quo, or a specific politician. The biggest scandal of the last years, the illegal surveillance of journalists, public persons, the leader of opposition party PASOK, even ministers of their own government, in which as all facts show, a small team around the prime minister was involved, using the country's secret service and illegal software was basically buried by almost all mainstream media in the beginning. It came forth only by a few and only a few are still investigating what has happened. Same thing with immigration issues. When NYT had a front page with video and clear evidence of illegal immigrants' pushbacks, this was featured only in small handful of left wing media. And no mention at all in mainstream news channels or other political shows. Also there is no journalistic ethos like in other western countries as to what a journalist can do or say. Journalists may associate themselves freely with politicians or business interests and this won't cause them any problems. Whereas in other countries, journalists would be either resigned or sacked, that never happens in Greece. That is the press freedom issue in Greece.
There is not oppression of free speech in a country where anyone can go live in national tv and start calling names the prime minister. Literally, this was fashionable, people were passing behind reporters while in libe transmission and where yelling "Mitsotaki go f your self". No one stop them.
I watched this live-streamed and in the interim hours I have reflected on how professional and personable a man he presents and how he then looks in light of the questions he is asked. What a nice informed educated erudite man he appears. His reference to skills shortages holding back the Greek economy were insightful and how main stream politicians in western democracies perhaps should view/eulogise immigration. So I searched and found: "European Economy Institutional Papers" Not quite so rosy after-all. Maybe some questions directed at him about the extremely high youth unemployment figures and how Greece's financials as a % are amongst the lowest in the EU and are expected to remain there for decades even with his reforms, would have cast his administration in a more realistic light?
Speaking of his administration he expanded the greek workweek to 6 days a week even though Greeks work longer and harder than the west already and he's been overseeing the Greek coastguard threw migrants overboard to their deaths for 3 years.
With all due respect your comment is way off reality I m afraid. And I mean greek reality. There are numerous examples that this man in a different country would have been prosecuted legally but not in Greece. Poverty is rising, costs increasing, wage increases are way below inflation, constant reduction in health care and education, increasing taxes, reducing benefits, increasing number of young working age people from Greece, economical scandals and I can keep writing for days. The only good thing this man has is his media team that has managed rather impressively to create this persona. Talks when he wants and people that he prefers with a given script and nobody asking crucial questions rather than philosophical bs. He has multiple time declined open public invitations to debate with certain journalists
I'm not familiar with the details of the Greek PM, but his mode of speaking appeals to reason and inclusion, and offers accountability. The way populists speak are always aimed at avoiding accountability and appealing to emotion and division, and that mode of communication lacks coherent solution beyond grievance. Maybe I'm being hornswoggled, but I don't perceive this man as anywhere near in the same vein as the 'save your society with this one clever trick' type politicians that seem to be in vogue. There was some allusion to the idea that he might have populist tendencies, but I would be curious where that comes from.
This is only a facade though. His party is just a marketing departament. Look into all the scandals with Siemens (debute scandal), greek trains/human remains scandal, privatization of everything and calling opportunities 800 euro Jobs. Greeks leave and do not come back. We are the 10th country with migrating citizens which leave the country World wide and first in the EU. Last year 163.000 people left (we are 10 million).
The comment section is a real eye-opener. It's amazing how out of touch some people are. It's not just a matter of left or right; it's a question of critical thinking
brutally honest Greek here; This guy is the most competent prime minister we had for decades in terms of country management. In terms of politics; Greece owes it's loss of competitiveness to the choices the (corrupted) socialists made in the 90s. Not that this guy's party managed to change things but the irreversible damage was done by the socialists who created a monstrosity of a state with infinitely long processes that were hostile to the citizens and business men alike. Also they promoted syndicates and working councils (as a means to consolidate their own political power ofcourse) to an extreme extend which worked against any factory that wanted to set up shop in Greece. Having said that, today Mitsotakis is running rampant and corruption at every stage of the mechanism is at wild levels. I personally know that members of the government charge a fee of 20% to grant an EU funded national project to their suppliers. Millions and millions of euros are being stolen on every level of the state processes. I hope Europe enforces some harder control measures on us because we are unable to manage ourselves. The few will always take care of themselves and ignore the benefits of the many; corruption is too deep into the members of the political parties to change from within.
@@rafailgounadakis7765 You are not really right wing if you borrow money, be fiscally irresponsible, blow up the public debt, ramp up the number of civil cervants, and prompt the syndicates to run the factories. 😅😅
Mitsotakis is eloquent using the English language, due to working in New York in his early years. He paints a good picture of himself. The truth is that he is a good leader mainly because he uses socialist practices in times of crisis (e.g. giving out plentiful vouchers during and after Covid) and doesn't hesitate to write off criminal politicians out of the party and the government (parliament members like: Nikas, Amanatidis, Avgenakis etc). On asylum practices, the european press has largely been unfair to him (Interview Quote "you did not go to Samos). However one thing he doesn't admit is that it was really Syriza 2nd term government (Tsakalotos) which returned Greece to fiscal balance and not him.... he takes too much credit for fiscal balancing when it was actually the populist leftists who really fixed it.
If you listen to Blair, Campbell did massmedia (primarily English) while Blair did personal meetings, internationally and domestically, with politicians and "stakeholders" as it's called nowadays. There is no question who was master and who were servants, but Campbell may have been a highly ranked servant, which wasn't always popular among, for instance, ministers.
Fantastic interview guys. I am a Brit living in Greece and after the previous government he is a wonderful breath of fresh air. Always interesting and intelligent to listen to. Well done.
Get over it and move on. Instead of focusing on the real problems Greece has, people went on the fence for a basic human right. The right to love and to get married. Time to focus on , food prices,gas/ petrol prices, high electricity bills , weak health care, shitty education, migration, high taxes....but noooo, greeks get mad about gay marriage lol !!
In Greece we have a saying that loosely translates to "no one is declared a Saint in their hometown". You can understand the meaning when you juxtapose the praise from non-Greeks to snarky complaints of entitled louben Greeks in this comment section. There are many people in Greece that still dream of the handouts era of Papandreou that fed them or their parents.
The "saint" thing was also my thought 😅. About the handouts: isn't it that in order to keep their popularity up the current greek government is walking somehow the same path like previous ones (PASOK, Syriza)? I mean all those "passes" and "programms" i.e. food-pass, youth-pass, house-renovation programme etc.? It's the same path that brought GR to the brink of economic collapse not so long ago 😮
@@DG1965 There's a huge difference. Those "handouts" are targeted towards very specific social groups (i.e. the poorest strata of Greek society), and are relatively well regulated regarding the way that they are handed out. Also, all this money is redistributed by taxing more fairly and increasing income from taxes (thus dramatically lowering tax evasion in the country) while at the same time implementing responsible fiscal policies and by making the most out of EU funds. You cannot compare the handouts by Papandreou in the 80s or those of the populist Tsipras with what is going on right now. Spending within your means is a concept that only now is beginning to be processed and understood by the average Greek and the political system and it's Mitsotakis's government who are making this happen.
@@TheRealTopGunZ How can you tell the type of Greeks that aren't happy with the policies of this man?? The hardest critisim occurred into his very own party. I suppose the louben Greeks are, most likely there to be found. That's very good to know.. As for the handouts, obviously you do belong in the close circle of this government that takes part on the contemporary handouts that is only for a few.!!
Because democracy was restored in 1974, I went to Greece, island hopping. When I arrived in Kos at five in the morning, there was a crowd on land waiting to board the ferry I was about to get off. I was told that they desperately wanted to leave, as Turkey had just invaded Cyprus and they feared the Turks would invade all the Greek East Aegean islands. I decided to stay on the island, so I enjoyed several days with very few tourists around. I then went to Samos and again, very few tourists were there. Unfortunately, 50 years on, the situation in Cyprus still hasn't changed and I doubt it will in the coming years.
Just saying, Venizelos funded and supported the Triple E(National Union of Hellas), and supported the Pogrom at Campbell in 1931. in 1933 it was planned for him an Plastiras to coup the government and install a Mussolini type Dictatorship, but Venizelos said it wasn't worth it. Venizelos' history is pretty dark after 1923 where he blamed the loss of the Anatolian Campaign to the Jews since the Jews didn't like him and always voted against him, which was one of the reasons why he funded the Triple E. Like, if people actually sit down and learn about Venizelos, the guy was ready to march into Athens in ww1 and kill all the royal family but Britain told him to chill. Dude is a menace...
At least the agreement to reduce illegal immigration into Greece worked out in the end with Turkiye and Greece. There are now no trojan horses between our friendship and partnership now. Thank you. 🇬🇷 🇹🇷
I don’t stand with Kyriakos Mitsotakis and his clan politically (one notable exception is his great-grand uncle, Eleutherios Venizelos - in my view, the greatest statesman in modern Greek history), but I will say this: the prime minister does come across as passably literate, convincingly reasonable, and reassuringly sane (no small mercies in the public sphere internationally these days).
I am 31 and live in Greece. I know not a single person in my circle who votes for any party in Greece. There are only a few 70 year olds up in the mountains and members of secret organizations.
And why is that? What is the reason for such distrust of politicians? In some analyzes I can read that in recent years the Greek economy has improved and the GDP is growing. Is this noticeable for ordinary people in Greece, I mean the improvement in well-being?
@@kananjafarov4563 The reason why I personally distrust politicians, is because I have been made to suspect that every time fertility rate increases systematically, they seem to create "crises" to create unemployment, decrease GDP per capita (corrected for inflation of course) to decrease it again, while at the same time they allow the settlement in the country of people with less good quality of phenotype. So because they act in a way to decrease the native population, sometimes with brutal ways (such as above 10% unemployment rate for many years), while they increase the number and percentage of people with less good quality of phenotype. Which I and everyone in my circle do not want. The greek economy has worsened (even more) since March 2020, if you look at real GDP per capita, which has decreased. On the contrary, our "beloved" greek government claims publically, that "GDP increased by 5% in 2022". Which is 100% true, but of course they never seem to also claim publicly that inflation in Greece in 2022 was 9.3%, which means that real GDP per capita decreased by ~ 5%. Meanwhile, there is not a single party which offers to solve the above problems. Which means that Greece is not a democracy (unlike what the politicians claim it to be),
@@tomorrowneverdies567 Thanks for your reply. The artificial decline or slowdown in GDP growth or playing with numbers can be explained by Greece's huge external debt obligations. The government knows that if they perform well, they will have to start paying off huge foreign debts. But if they have a slow growing economy and a large number of people on social care or pensioners, they may receive additional benefits from EU financing sources. Maybe I'm wrong, the first thing that comes to mind.
@@tomorrowneverdies567 And what do you think about Yanis Varoufakis? I know he is very controversial in his thoughts. I listen to his interviews. He is definitely a deep thinker, but he seems to be a socialist.
And now he’s the one that’s working and getting paid for Greece to go back to otoman empire. In addition to his ancestors that had struggled for the opposite scope.
What we do see here in Greece from this man, contrary to what he claims, is brutally dishonest in whole fields and policies he follows. A simple way to describe his moto is "One step ahead two steps backward"
Strange what you are saying now since the previous government brought us bankruptcy, capital controls and made Greeks ashamed to say they are Greek. At this moment the country has nothing to do with the past, but you talk about regression... and even in English so you can spread your leftist propaganda properly. Good job.
Gr debt is even bigger. Greeks at the same time are much poorer. Everything in Greece has been given away for a small percentage of real value, together with state and bank finance to buyers. Nothing left to support growth. But this time, markets don't seem to bother.
@@iparipaitegianiparipaitegi4643 Flurishing numbers impoverished people with the exception of a few around the circle. That can hardly be called economic improvement.
As you British fellows say "what a burk" . Anyone who grew up in a golden swing must have a lot of empathy and intelligence to step into the shoes of even the last peasant And you need to do that to run a country like Greece . He's more suitable for govern Luxembourg
He changed the rules. Di t forget the 'populist' tsipras allowed around 4milluin refugees from Iraq and Syria to pass through. The minute ND took power they started push backs and other dangerous tactics. Yes, he is totally responsible for 100s of deaths. If not thousands.
26:20 Why Rory would never have been a good PM. Desperate to be liked, and unable to challenge on allegations that have a mountain of evidence to support them
I honestly have the query: why should youngsters engage in politics if they see people like the PM Mitsotakis being a third generation PM? Peoples are either going to own the polity or disengage. They are not the servants or the excuse of hereditary elites. I have voted twice for Mitsotakis. I understand many of his political dilemmas. However, he does make room for local financial elites instead of the many. He does adopt the notion of the "tyranny of the majority" when it comes to laws like the right of homosexuals to adopt children (which has falsely been advertised as the right to marriage or equality to marriage). There is an issue with corruption, like in the electricity production market or media in Greece, no matter if he feels confident on that or not. When you are a voter there is a balance between voting what is best and what is less bad, if that makes any sense. His first time in power he was clearly the best in Greece. Now he is the less bad and that obviously due to the fact that the opposition is in a predicament. And illegal immigration is an issue. Greece was never a colonial power to have a moral obligation to accept Arabs and Africans. That is an issue of Britain and France. So not only elites like his family occupy all the positions of power in politics, not only financial elites like the ones that he promotes occupy all the key positions of the economy, devastated people who are obviously in need of help, but they are illegally here, occupy neighbourhoods and resources. No wonder the people's of Europe turn to populists. At least they pretend to be listening. Whilst established elites, like the Mitsotakis' family, simply don't even pretend to be listening. That comes from a(n ex) voter. I am really troubled for Europe's future.
Something said here which is so true - If Europe does not want Africa living in Europe, then Europe needs to take a more active role in Africa to make sure the conditions are improving and there is opportunities for people to stay there.
Since The Prime Minister is a big fan of AI, i was wondering if he'll use it to gather data on real ethnic composition of Greek Society The Greek government's official position is that the country's population is almost entirely Greek and there are no ethnic or national minorities However, Greece has become more ethnically diverse in recent decades, with immigrants and co-ethnics accounting for more than 15% of the population Some of the ethnic groups in Greece include: Turks: A very large minority group in Greece. Most are tobacco farmers on the Thrace plains and are about half Muslim and half Greek Orthodox Albanians: Make up about 6-9% of the population Other ethnic groups: Include Vlachs, Armenians, Jews, and Romani peoples
We don’t have Jews anymore the Germans killed them all Romani are a not even 1% as for Albanians most of them were assimilated heck their children don’t even speak Albanian as for the immigrants we have them on camps or in neighborhoods in Athens they aren’t part of our society the Muslims in eastern Thrace consider themselves Greek
1:04:20 Rory was absolutely wrong here. The Greek extreme-right parties got close to 20% in the European election. And of course immigration is a HUGE issue in Greece despite what the Greek PM said.
It was his party who was responsible for the 2009 debt crisis in the first place, and it were the 'populists' who had to deal with it. Of course he doesn't mention that! 🤣
Incorrect. The causes of the 2009 debt crisis in Greece are too complex and the process took too long to blame on any one party or one political administration's 4 year term.
@@bozeeke Still his party had 4 years time to handle it, but it were those "populists" of the Syriza 2nd term government (as other posters here pointed out) which returned Greece to fiscal balance and not his party. Of course he would never say that, because this (like some other things) doesn't fit the narrative of this smooth, slick and eloquent talker... 🤣🤣
@@mori1bund Syriza actually made things worse. They delivered on nothing they promised and they pissed off Germany and the EU to the point that the Austerity package deal turned out worse for the average citizen than it would have been if they were less uncooperative with the EU and the lenders.
@@mori1bund No it's definitely Syriza's fault. Had Tsipras and Varoufakis not entered negotiations acting like a bunch of petulant children, they would have gotten a better deal for the Greek taxpayers. And in the long run, it's New Democracy focusing on the economic growth and commerce that has started to improve the economy. Leftists (which you clearly are one if you're defending Tsipras) don't know the first thing about running an economy.
Unfortunately, there's no reason why the EU should rush to have the UK back. Unrealiable partner. EU cities benefitting from London being outside of the Single Market. Why would they want us back right now?
I can’t remember how much the UK paid in as a net contributor. But I’d start with that. I’m a huge fan of the EU as a concept. But even a an EU-Phile I used to get annoyed at ‘paid for by the EU’ signs driving around the UK.
There are plenty of reasons on paper why the EU would want the UK to re-join. Its GDP would increase by $3 trillion. It would regain one of the world's most important financial and tech centres. It would regain many of the world's top universities. It would regain a large net contributor to the EU budget. Having said all of that, there is a lot of personal bitterness in Europe about Brexit which would probably influence their thinking.
There is a reason and that is European defence. In a scenario where Trump regains the White House and starts to renegade on support for Ukraine and condemnation of NATO, there will be a sudden surge in support for a European only military alliance. This will likely be EU led and the members of the EU will want the UK part of that alliance. The threat of Russia is very real to many eastern EU member countries and Putin is very ambitious and power hungry. It is a scenario that I hope doesn't happen, but with a very unpredictable Trump presidency, it could work in the UK's favour if (and it is a big 'if') the UK chooses to rejoin the EU.
Congratulations to Greece on economic progress in recent years. Greece desperately needs to attract the Greek diaspora and foreign talent to move to Greece for Greece to keep growing.
I went in thinking this would be another rant (I dont follow Greek politics closely). I expected corrupted and populist messages - and evasion of responsability. But it was quite the opposite. I used to be a right wing populist myself - but I woke up and smelled the coffee in 2014 with the Russian invasion of Ukraine. This politician (and others) - and recent events - show me I made the right decision....and we do love to be right! Great interview. Thanks.
@@bunnystrasse No - I am into common sense. You see, I am Scandinavian. In 2016 I supported Trump for President. His actions and subsequent events convinced me that the dictatarship of the majority has NOTHING to do with real democracy. So these days I judge people (and politicians) on their stance on the conflict in Ukraine. It is a much more adequate measuring stick of human quality or lack of same.
Articulate, thoughtful, and interesting to listen to. I didn't know much about Kyriakos other than recognising his name and that he was Greece's PM before listening to this, but I've come away quite impressed.
Bit rich of the Greek PM who's family fled into exile via small boats, to talk about defending his border and how great his coastguard is. Should have asked him if his own policies would have accepted his family if they fled to Greece from elsewhere. Any one going to mention the coastguard confiscating phones and pushing boats back into the ocean, or the recent accusations of the coastguard throwing people overboard to their deaths?
You should consider yourself lucky if you are 1/100th of the man you try to mock guided by your ignorance. '' Active in the resistance during the Nazi occupation of Crete (1941-44), Mitsotakis was twice arrested and sentenced to death.''
@@georgesotiriou7051 Ok? I didn't mock him. Why do you consider being a refugee a form of mockery? I compared his previous families circumstance with his current policies, and highlighted wide spread reports of their actions. Please describe how his father being in the resistance effects whether or not people should be called out for overseeing a police force which kills people?
@@nathaniellowe5100 Except they don't kill people. It really comes across that you are ignorant about Greek politics. These are the views of a naive observer.
Isn't this the guy that expanded the greek workweek to 6 days a week even though Greeks work longer and harder than the west already? And isn't this the guy overseeing the Greek coastguard threw migrants overboard to their deaths for 3 years?
@@alfredthegreat9543 Yeah, nah. People died in Haymarket for the 5 day workweek and we in Romania died during the revolution to join the west's living standard including the 5 day workweek. Also good luck forcing the Greek people into staying into their country that forces them to work 6 days a week. Hello brain drain.
what you say is WRONG the workeek didnt expand it was just ALLOWED to people IF they want to work 1 extra day and get paid more for that in any case its not imposed to anyone
It allows people to work 6 days a week IF they choose to. It doesn't FORCE them to do it. It also protects employees and employers from being illegal by not declaring labour. Essentially, all the government is doing is creating the legal framework to normalize what is already the case in large parts of the Greek labour market. I wonder if people like you just don't understand anything that is even remotely more complex that a newspaper headline or you just choose to parrot your half-assed bullshit in order to push your propaganda and agenda? My money is on the latter.
You should have stayed for a while in Greece to visit the closed "refugees-camps" on the islands (if they let you in) and see the massive presence of Frontex. Mitsotakis was not screaming about building a wall, like Trump did. He just built it. Together with von der Leyen and with a big portion of violence he went against the Syrian families that Turkey sent over the Evro years ago. And then he went with his aircraft to Poland to take Ukranian refugees to Greece. "Migration is no issue" - for whom? Not to talk about the train scandal, that is not solved with an "I am sorry". The results of European austerity policy are still felt by the majority of the population: poverty, bad health system etc. Mitsotakis is an PM living in Lalaland, who tells us everyday how wonderful Greece is doing. And yet he does not see, that the people are struggling, the cost of living exploded while the minimum loan is 5 EU per hour. His definition of populism was not complete. We remember Trump praising his politics, while he was in office. Mitsotakis is more decent. I think if you had talked to more people in this country, you would have been a bit more critical in the interview. You mentioned that he might play a central role in the EU. I am afraid that this is possible. Best wishes from Samos
actually they won around 37%. Less than half voted. You do the maths.... There are 3 left wing parties. Pasok, syriza and communist. If they worked together they'd win. Greece is actually overwhelming left wing socialist in population. But, they are always fighting each other. Allowing ND to take power often.
Reading the comments left by Greeks, that insinuate that Mitsotakis is some kind of an idiot dictator war criminal, I'd have to say they need to dehumanize politicians less and consider that usually decisions aren't taken lightly and without balancing the consequences. Let me also remind that this was tha case with Tsipras and the 'kolotoumba' in the 2015 referendum, as many appear to be supporters
Exactly, decisions aren't taken lightly. And every decision that Mitsotakis made from the very first day in office was solely to promote his interests and those of his friends. His first action as a PM was to take the National Intelligence Service, the Athens News Agency, and the Hellenic Broadcasting Corporation under his personal control. His government is responsible for major scandals and the further devastation of our lives during the past 5 years. The Greek "Watergate" contained a list of many officials, political opponents, ministers of his government, and Greek army leaders. He was eavesdropping on all of them. The ultimate control of the media led to widespread governmental propaganda and the belief that there is no alternative (TINA). The freedom of press is really low, and Reporters without Borders placed Greece in the 108th and 107th respective places for 2022 and 2023 (out of 180 countries). Please take a look at their latest reports. The train collision of Tempi with 57 people killed (if not murdered), the refugee pushbacks (with 500-600 drowned next to Pylos), the hyper-profits for oligarchs (in energy, supermarkets, and banking), the extreme privatization (electricity, hospitals, universities, trains, ports, airports, beaches, forests), the totalitarian police control, the devaluation of artists and culture in general, the degradation of public education and healthcare, the most expensive electricity in Europe, the 700k first residences that are and will be auctioned due to non-performing loans. Those are all problems that almost no one reports on. 13-hour work days, 6 days work-weeks. No comment. It is essential to discuss how devastating this situation is for the younger generations, who will probably leave the country. If we had a robust and separated judicial system, Mitsotakis would be ousted and probably imprisoned. Tsipras betrayed the Greek people with a referendum he never had the guts to follow. We should search for light in people who have stayed true to their words, like mr. Varoufakis or anyone like him. Mitsotakis is not a solution.
As a Greek I can only tell you that Greeks forget very easily.. Tsipras governed the country and literally did nothing. No investments, overtaxation, literally killed what was left from the middle class, opened the borders to illegal migrants (remember 'Moria'), did nothing for the young Greeks leaving the country, unemployment rising, and countless fake promises. In my opinion Tsipras was the worst pm a country could have.
Its not either Mitsotakis or Tsipras. If you see Greece's rank on freedom of the press you will probably see who rules the country... Yes its Mitsotakis and the money he gives to the mass media.
2,2 out of 10,4 millions voted for him mainly by civil servants and followers of some oligarchs who inherited some money and think they own the country. Weak men make hard times and corrupted politicians...
When I moved to Greece I promised not to get into the local politics. Lol. Here I am listening to this. It's interesting to hear Mitsotakis to understand a bit why Greeks whilst living in a beautiful country with lots of enviable traits and assets are generally quite negative in their assessment of their country's economic and political environment. It's also good to hear his opinion on Hungary's govt as my wife is Hungarian and I spent several years living there.
World class politicians. Many don’t like him but Greeks should be proud of having someone so eloquent defending and promoting Greece abroad. The previous guy could not put an English sentence together.
I live in Crete and cant understand how a country as part of the EU does not have one government animal shelter and zero sterilization campaigns. Many islanders have no interest in spending money on sterlization hence the Island is overun with kittens and puppies that are dumped on the side of a road in a box or poisoning to control populations. The only people who help these domestic animals are volunteers. The only government action is great laws to prevent cruelty and breeding but hardly any action. One has to report to the police who are not particularly interested in solving animal related issues ( as expected )
This political family has bankrupted Greece at least one time so far ... and the greek economics now show that we are steadily going for the 2nd round , all thanks to this family.
He is eloquent and convincing in English, explaining himself and his policies better than any Greek politician of the last 40 years. In my view, so far, he is successful in trying to keep a balance in an era of profound confusion. Time will tell.
What saving them from absolute desolation and possibly from them losing territorial integrity ? Indeed Greeks should wake up everyday and thank the EU for saving them
There is one thing to consider, Greece had decades of corruption. That has changed to be a lot more modern. Yes - it was forced to. It was forced by the market, IMF, ECB and other debtor nations. Greece lied about their stats and joined the Euro when they were not ready. It was a very hard path. Sadly they chose it.
no mention then of NDs creating the conditions that led to crisis in Greece. It was their govts overspending and lack of house keeping that created to huge deficit. Teflon mitsotakis. This interview is far too chummy. It's not exactly pacman is it. Shame , a useful opportunity for a real in depth interview missed cos you got star struck. Elefteros etc.... ooooof
"Immigration is a non issue" -for me, a greek person, 31, and for all of my acquaintances, it is The only issue. Please reverse everything politicians say, and you will get the truth. 😁
very impressive guy, this Kyriakos Mitsotakis ... highly constructive, no smoke blower, no hot air maker ... this sort of person is necessary to straiten UK politics & UK social economics out ... 🌞
I'd recommend looking into the details of some of the controversies mentioned, particually the wiretapping, press freedom, church / state separation, and what's happening off of their coast. His presentation and form is immaculate, but he's quick to say sorry on one hand while blocking and delaying corrective actions for the things he's sorry about.
Gentlemen this interview was a cracker and PM I listened to the interview all the way through which was very insightful and politely honest. Thank you all!
Interesting that a politician who is the 4th generation of a political dynasty doesn't "believe in elites."
The term "Elite" is a pretty useless term.. in practice all it means is person with access that I don't like, as apposed to "man of the people" which is a person with access that I do like..
"Elites" is a term used by right-wing US nutjobs who are themselves part of the Elite but what to convince to prols they're good working stock
🎯🎯🎯
That is not what he says in Greek.
Actually it is not interesting. It is logical he learned from within and from without uneven exile, it is very logical.
This family is the best example of politicians that preach of a "small state" and privatising everything while at the same time have made massive fortune funded by the state in various ways.
What small state ? This guy is more of a socialist than Tsipras
@@gregpaokfc Τα επιδόματα δεν είναι σοσιαλισμός ρε ζώο.
The state ballooned under him
@@gregpaokfc lmao
privatizing is good. corporations are less prone to nepotism than the goverment
"immigration is a non issue" Your popularity went from 41% to 27% because of a non-issue then..
Well that was just European elections..
The weather was great on that day of elections, summer right at the beginning, and Greeks just chose to go to the beach instead of going to vote.
Let's wait and see what his winning percentage will be in the next national elections in 2027 😊
@@mdk4453you dont really get how percentages work right?? typical mitsotakis enjoyer
@@markovalntobresci5714 Mitsotakis was won the sheeping herd of the "center", which is the typical non-political voters without the knokledge of what they actual want from a government. These people are the one that didn't go to vote on European elections. In the national elections they'll go again like stupid sheeps to vote again for the dynasty and again they'll reach the 40something%. Greece's political field is dead, the dynasty won and the people just don't give a fuck
@@mdk4453 Now it makes sense...people who vote for Mitsotakis dont really know about maths and thus economics
He got 33% in the last European elections, that's a 6% drop in support, stop spreading misinformation.
The epitome of nepotism.
He won the elections 3 times. How's that nepotism?
We saw how non-nepotist Tsipras performed, thx.
@@AntioxidantttGreenberg Troll
@@Antioxidanttt Far better, considering the circumstances.
And you are the epitome of stupidity. ΚΑΤΑΛΑΒΕΣ ΚΩΛΟΦΑΣΙΣΤΑΚΟ;
Migration is a big issue in Greece. Mitsotakis is lying.
Wisely managed by the EU which is unified and following an overall strategy including paying Turkey and others to cooperate ?
Lieing * μάθε αγγλικά πρώτα...
@@vuzass πριν πεταξεις μια μαλακια πρεπει λιγο να βαλεισ το μυαλο σου να δουλεψει. Οριστε λοιπον (Beware of spelling! The present participle of lie is not lieing. The i becomes a y: lying. Here is a mnemonic to help you tell laying and lying apart: “If you tell an untruth, it is a lie, not a lay; and if you are in the process of telling an untruth you are lying, not laying.”)
@@vuzass τι λες βρε αμορφωτε ; εσύ είσαι λάθος βρε πιθηκάκι.
@@vuzass You're totally wrong. From an English guy
Greece belongs to Greeks, not Mitsotakis. If Greeks want closed borders, then the borders will remain closed, no matter the crisis. Africa and Middle East is a whole Continent with billions of people. Fix your countries
Να μείνουν κλειστά τα σύνορα και για τους Έλληνες. Να μην μπορούν να φύγουν και όσοι έφυγαν να μην μπορούν να γυρίσουν. Να τους αφαιρεθεί και η υπηκοότητα και η ιθαγένεια και το δικαίωμα ψήφου.
That's right. People think that countries are obligated to take in everyone who manages to get in under the pretext of "fleeing poverty"
These clowns don't understand that illegal immigration actual reinforces poverty.
Greece doesn't want closed borders, the far-right get very few votes.
First of all is there anyone that claims that Mitsotakis is the owner of Greece? We vote for him to manage our faiths and our lives because he is the only capable of doing so from the ones that ask for our votes.
Secondly Greece has international obligations deriving from International Treaties. Closed borders is something that is close to impossible to implement in reality. Control of migration and selection of those migrants who are eligible to receive a asylum and those who are illegal is a way more realistic target.
@@christossp7054 Τί λες ρε τρολάκι της ΝΔ; Με 28% κυβερνάτε. Προσεχώς μονοψήφιο και το κωλόσογο θα φύγει νύχτα.
30:45 There are NO Macedonians outside Greece! Period. Learn history or drop it altogerther. Macedonia, is a Greek name of a Greek territory for more than 2000 years. The Slavs of the state of Skopja were just barbarians at that time.
Am I the only person who thought Alistair was introducing Kyriakos Grizzly? The actual prime minister of Greece
No, he cant be, how will he manage to be the prime minister of Greece and the emperor of mankind at the same time. Surely his swollyness Kyriakos delegates tasks.
Kyriakos Grizzly is the Emperor. Kyriakos Mitsotakis is only the Prime minister. Get your facts straight!
Very eloquent man to very soft soft questions, you guys were on a mission of making Kiraiko looking good, no hard questions asked!
My thoughts exactly! There is a suspicion going around about western powerful "allies" keeping this man and his regime in power.
Me being from Greece and knowing his opposition I cant make a decision whether this a good thing for the people of this country or not (probably not!)
Looks like he's just talking to 2 of his party members about the past...he gives they answers they want and they ask the questions he wants
Cool-is ALWAYS give scripted interviews
If he doesn't know the questions in advance he doesn't give the interview
"Islanders in Greece are now trilled with the immigration issue and immigration is a no problem now !" "The economy has recovered from the crisis and the country is doing great !" "There is no freedom of speech and freedom of the press issue !" and so on and so forth . He is clearly disconnected from the Greek reality and spoke as if he was the PM of Sweden . That's populism
Popoulism big time.
He is not disconnected , he is an opportunist politician
Greece stands tied for last place (with Hungary) in freedom of press in a recent Reuters institute research in 47 countries and 2nd to last in citizens satisfaction on how democracy works (78% dissatisfaction) and just below Colombia in a recent Pew research center poll across 31 countries around the world. If you want to know a little bit about a
PM ask the people not the PM, especially when the PM is the product of nepotism. The Hagiography is intended to introduce him to foreign audiences since he's looking to jump to a senior European political role. Europe's better off without him and most certainly Greece is better off without him too too. That is the honest truth.Any Greek telling you otherwise is probably employed in some party political office. Plenty of those needed to keep such people in power especially in corrupt governments.
ΠΟΣΟ ΜΑΛΑΚΑΣ ΜΠΟΡΕΙ ΝΑ ΕΙΣΑΙ;
You said it all. Bravo.
goto benezuela xeno-troll-8417
@@chrissnik forgot to mention also greece became last on bureaucracy complexity in the world in the business index, the most unpopular for business, and among the top in monopolies and cartels in the world accornding to OECD under the PMship of Mitsotakis. Also its citizens are now the second poorest in the EU and also working the most hours in Western countries. Of course like I said, those employed by regimes are happy nomatter what.
Greece ranks 88 out of 180 countries in the RSF not good not bad. Also i don't think his that bad compared to what other choices Greece has.
Immigration is an issue in Greece. Maybe not to the extent of Germany or Belgium (especially Muslim immigrants) but the face of the metropolitan cities has radically changed. There are areas that are no longer accessible to Greeks - who used to be posh, wealthy areas now totally ghettoed. Try walking around the Omonoia square without feeling scared. The big cities are suffering from an extreme rise in burglaries and crime, the majority of which is done by immigrants. PM Mitsotakis is not a saint, but he is the best the country can have at the moment.
This guy is a clown..His family is in Politics for 200 years the epitomy of nepotism its laughable.
@@churchofsatanalbania1468 you a re full of crp.
You forget that Mitsotakis is ELECTED.
The people chose him.
@@intellectualninjamonkey2496 So you mean that Greece in a 11 milion population Mitsotakis is the smartest one and the best politician?Then that says a lot about Greece as a nation..
@@churchofsatanalbania1468no they just keep lying to get elected then scum us blame us the citizens for everything and take our money and leave while he fear monger us with COVID he was out taking a nice bath at the seas of our Islands hypocrite
@@churchofsatanalbania1468 smartest? What the hell "smartest" mens? This is a junior high school mentality.
The right word is "effective". Mitsotakis is an effective manager of a public administration group of people, his cabinet.
Just like a big business, the government doesn't need the .. smartest person in charge it needs an effective MANAGER in charge. A person who manages his ministers in an effective way.
And how exactly we test who is smart and who is smarter anyway, we make the candidates take a math test?
@@intellectualninjamonkey2496Firstly 47% of the people didn't vote, so he got 41% of the 53% who voted so around 2,200,000 of 10,000,000 Greeks actually voted him so it's not like the majority of the Greek people want him. Secondly since when the majority is always right? So if the majority of the population thinks that jumping of a cliff is a good idea then we should do it? Btw jumping of a cliff is a better idea than voting the clown in the video.
He unfortunately also stands for all the things that are wrong with Geek politics: Elitist (a life completely removed from the life of ordinary Greeks from birth), nepotistic (dynastic politics are worse in Greece than in any other European country), unambitious inward and instead ambitious outward (it is more important to Geek elites to impress social circles in Paris or London than anyone in Athens) - and ultimately unpatriotic (I remember the time when Greeks were the biggest foreign buyers of apartments in Berlin during the Euro crises)
Excellent definition of populism in my opinion; very articulate
Populism = Economic An卐iety
Yes, you can have your cake and eat it.... what you can't do is eat your cake and have it.
That saying is something that's been bothering you since childhood, isn't it, Chris?
@@Evan490BC "you can't do is eat your cake and have it." This was the original saying. Over time it got inverted. The original makes much more sense
@@FireflyOnTheMoonexcept it’s a silly saying as what’s the point of having a cake if you can’t eat it? The inverted version is more intriguing.
I love what he said about being present meeting people as PM.
When I was about 8 my father was TV camera man, we bumped into NZs PM Helen Clarke in an elevator at the studio. She told me my dad was the best camera man in the country. And she really seemed like she believed it.
Always kept that moment with me
He doesn't, that's a lie. One example: he refused to meet with families that they lost their loved ones in the last year s tragedy in Tempi (train collision).
@@mvl9084είσαι μλκς
As a Greek living in Britain (and fan of most of your podcasts on The Rest is Politics) I find the rehabilitation of Mitsotakis and Nea Dimokratia (his party) to be extremely concerning.
You shouldn't take at face value a random comment on RUclips, but you also shouldn't take everything Mitsotakis says as the truth. Just because he frames himself as an American-educated, centrist and non-populist, it does not mean that it is the complete truth.
The start of his political career was defined by the Siemens Scandal, when many Greek politicians were found (allegedly) to be accepting bribes and gifts from the German company Siemens. He leads a government that has been investigated by the UN for Human Rights violations regarding the treatment of refugees in the Aegean Sea. One of his first acts as Prime Minister was to restrict the independence of ERT (our BBC) and EYP (our intelligence agency) and a few years later spying software linked to one of his close associates was found on the phone of Androulakis (the leader of our Lib-Dem equivalent). He has placed very right-wing figures, like Thanos Plevris, Makis Voridis and Adonis Georgiadis in high ranking ministries and important positions within his party. He can claim to be a centrist (and legalising gay marriage is some evidence to that) but as leader of the oppisition he had attacked legislation that would have made changing genders easier for trans people and attacked any attempts at seperating the Orthodox Church from the State. The economy is being transformed into a gig-economy for Greeks based around services and tourism, while incetivising expats and wealthy foreigners to come to Greece (and pay very little in tax). He has furthered the privatisation of the Public Electrcity Corporation, which led to Greece having some of the highest energy prices in Europe for some time. His government have repeatedly refused to cooperate with or slowed down the investigation into the Tembi railway disaster, where around 60 people died in a crash on the busiest railway line in Greece (connecting Athens and Thessaloniki), allegedly the railworker unions had warned the government on several occasions about the unsafe conditions but they were ignored. There were several accusation of mishandling the pandemic by the government which led to some very high excess deaths especially in the rural regions of Greece (he also repeatedly broke the quarantine rules that his government had implemented).
I worked with a Greek and Cypriot. I heard a lot about there issues with how these countries are being used as tax havens within the EU, with large quantities of board members of top companies being given passports, especially in Cyprus where apparently any top exec at Amazon gets an EU passport no questions asked.
Unfortunately any deep discussion about this is never going to happen while Greek has a PM toeing the EU narrative after how the previous administration went.
Greece also has one of the best performing economies in Europe thanks to his government. Privatisation and encouraging foreign investment is good and exactly what the Greek economy needs. Everyone knows what the state-owned enterprise and high tax policies did to Greece.
@@gabrieldsouza6541 all of that is fantastic.
Now let’s move onto the atrocities being committed in the med. All that money sent to turkey, how is it spent?
Within the uk the RNLI will assist any vessel stranded at sea. Hell I would bet they would even assist a Russian warship if the call came out and the navy couldn’t get there. Knowing there was a stricken vessel in the med, how can you coasts guards just point and go, oh look a not my problem? When does it become your problem, according to you?
Can you think of a situation where it is ever appropriate to throw someone overboard?
There are some incredibly serious accusations being levelled at the Greek PM right now and he’s come to do a fluff piece on RUclips about how great he is.
@@DaveSmith-s6e womp womp Greek voters don't seem to care about the NGO whining
@@gabrieldsouza6541 Gig economy work isn't sustainable. While the numbers look geat now, in a decade when the boom is over the picture won't be nearly as rosey.
If you can't eat the cake, there's no point having it
You are quite right, but this particular saying is often misunderstood, and is perhaps just badly phrased. The point of the phrase is, that if you eat your cake, you can no longer have it. You cannot both have your cake and eat it. The two propositions are mutually exclusive. Possess the cake, or eat the cake. Pick one.
Now whether or not the phrase is used well here, isn't a hill I would choose to fight on :)
@@CarnaghSidhe Oh! So it's like, "You can't eat your cake and still get to keep it" I see now!
@@Naren25 exactly that... it's a slippery one :)
Ted Kaczynski
You can't eat your cake just like that, he has to tax it so he can feed his big political family, duh!
As an Englishman who’s learnt Spanish and French I’m always impressed about how eloquent people like this man are - learning another language is not simply about the practical nature of comprehension but a deeper and wider understanding of humanity. I think we as Brits could benefit from this - English being the lingua Franca is a double edged sword
Indeed. I was instantly struck by the quality and fluidity of his English. I wondered of either AC or RS could do the same n Greek!!
To be fair Mitsotakis also studied in the US
Simply do not agree with this, if you think people learn English because of Britain is simply specious, the reason people speak English is because the USA speaks English and the media ...film, TV, and internet is in English (Unless you are Chinese), any intelligent and capable person who has ambition will speak English. Much better to consider his record rather than this sycophantic smooze by two redundant talking heads. I point you panpap5198, did they ask any hard or difficult questions ... of course they didn't.
@@andrewjohnston9115nobody’s saying he learns English because of Britain. They’re just saying it’s the Lingua Franca (common language) of international relations - this is partly because it’s the main language in the USA, and partly because of the british empire’s status as the hegemonic power during the 19th century.
He is also fluent in French and German
Are you serious?! This person comes from the same family that has ruled Greek politics since forever. I am 50 years old and i never spend half a day without his family in power. All of his relatives are ex prime ministers, high ranking ministers and mayors of Athens!!! Are you kidding me?!! Mitsotakis equals nepotism!!! The nerve!! The hypocrisy!!!
That’s true.. who elected them?
..the Greek minority said.. 😂😂
@@arxeiapersonal8109 idiots..also the opposition to his part is pathetic.
All those people were elected.
@@arxeiapersonal8109 douche or turd?
Reporter said " i am feeling very very sorry for the Macedonians having to change their names etc " .... and the Prime Minister ... NOTHING, did he correct him, NO ... Good job PM
Like father like son
exactly
it was the perfect pass for him to say that he is sorry for the real Macedonians which have to live with this disgrace but no...
Exactly.
@@ziovannioliveira the slav macedonians or the greek macedonians?
This video could become an ideal exemplar of 'long format' and why it works and why new services like nebula are gaining traction.
What a great interview knowing more about Greek politics.
25:41 Having watched the BBC documentary ‘Dead Calm; Killing in the Med’, I think there needs to a reassessment of the comment ‘big fence and big door’. If putting vulnerable men, women and children forcibly into an raft with no motor and dumping them in the sea, with huge risk, on the Turkish side of the sea border is a consequence of Government policy then the policy is morally and legally indefensible.
Agree with this. What was said in the interview seems disconnected with the heinous actions being reported on the ground (and in the water)
Clown podcast and clown guest
Why are you here then? This isn't made for you.
Very constructive
@@mildlydispleased3221 Ah yes the usual troll farm account that says "WhY ArE YoU hErE iF u DonT LiKe It". Bozo he's a PM and just because u watch a video of him doesnt mean u have to agree with him. Logic fallacy muchos? Go get a real job miserable lowlife troll farm acc
The issue of press freedom is not a matter of not having the right to say or write whatever you want. It is a matter of a depended relationship between mainstream media and political parties. There is minimum investigative journalism here and that is because media owners, directors, journalists may be depended by bank loans that may be in turn depended by politicans, or have other economic ties that put media in the position of not wanting to harm the government, or status-quo, or a specific politician. The biggest scandal of the last years, the illegal surveillance of journalists, public persons, the leader of opposition party PASOK, even ministers of their own government, in which as all facts show, a small team around the prime minister was involved, using the country's secret service and illegal software was basically buried by almost all mainstream media in the beginning. It came forth only by a few and only a few are still investigating what has happened. Same thing with immigration issues. When NYT had a front page with video and clear evidence of illegal immigrants' pushbacks, this was featured only in small handful of left wing media. And no mention at all in mainstream news channels or other political shows. Also there is no journalistic ethos like in other western countries as to what a journalist can do or say. Journalists may associate themselves freely with politicians or business interests and this won't cause them any problems. Whereas in other countries, journalists would be either resigned or sacked, that never happens in Greece. That is the press freedom issue in Greece.
There is not oppression of free speech in a country where anyone can go live in national tv and start calling names the prime minister.
Literally, this was fashionable, people were passing behind reporters while in libe transmission and where yelling "Mitsotaki go f your self".
No one stop them.
@@eggsandwine still, of every party has it's own media, this is not oppression and not propaganda.
This is called pluralism.
I watched this live-streamed and in the interim hours I have reflected on how professional and personable a man he presents and how he then looks in light of the questions he is asked. What a nice informed educated erudite man he appears. His reference to skills shortages holding back the Greek economy were insightful and how main stream politicians in western democracies perhaps should view/eulogise immigration. So I searched and found:
"European Economy Institutional Papers"
Not quite so rosy after-all. Maybe some questions directed at him about the extremely high youth unemployment figures and how Greece's financials as a % are amongst the lowest in the EU and are expected to remain there for decades even with his reforms, would have cast his administration in a more realistic light?
Speaking of his administration he expanded the greek workweek to 6 days a week even though Greeks work longer and harder than the west already and he's been overseeing the Greek coastguard threw migrants overboard to their deaths for 3 years.
@@Bobogdan258
pure lies
you should be ashamed of yourself
you are the left ....... a dead weight around Greece's neck
@@Bobogdan258 "The West". wtf?
@@FireflyOnTheMoon Western Europe?
With all due respect your comment is way off reality I m afraid. And I mean greek reality.
There are numerous examples that this man in a different country would have been prosecuted legally but not in Greece.
Poverty is rising, costs increasing, wage increases are way below inflation, constant reduction in health care and education, increasing taxes, reducing benefits, increasing number of young working age people from Greece, economical scandals and I can keep writing for days.
The only good thing this man has is his media team that has managed rather impressively to create this persona.
Talks when he wants and people that he prefers with a given script and nobody asking crucial questions rather than philosophical bs. He has multiple time declined open public invitations to debate with certain journalists
I'm not familiar with the details of the Greek PM, but his mode of speaking appeals to reason and inclusion, and offers accountability.
The way populists speak are always aimed at avoiding accountability and appealing to emotion and division, and that mode of communication lacks coherent solution beyond grievance.
Maybe I'm being hornswoggled, but I don't perceive this man as anywhere near in the same vein as the 'save your society with this one clever trick' type politicians that seem to be in vogue.
There was some allusion to the idea that he might have populist tendencies, but I would be curious where that comes from.
that was the most structured and the most vocab-wise pro comment ive ever read
👏👏👏👏
This is only a facade though. His party is just a marketing departament. Look into all the scandals with Siemens (debute scandal), greek trains/human remains scandal, privatization of everything and calling opportunities 800 euro Jobs. Greeks leave and do not come back. We are the 10th country with migrating citizens which leave the country World wide and first in the EU. Last year 163.000 people left (we are 10 million).
The comment section is a real eye-opener. It's amazing how out of touch some people are.
It's not just a matter of left or right; it's a question of critical thinking
True. Look at the way people are attacking Kyriakos Mitsotakis.
brutally honest Greek here; This guy is the most competent prime minister we had for decades in terms of country management. In terms of politics; Greece owes it's loss of competitiveness to the choices the (corrupted) socialists made in the 90s. Not that this guy's party managed to change things but the irreversible damage was done by the socialists who created a monstrosity of a state with infinitely long processes that were hostile to the citizens and business men alike. Also they promoted syndicates and working councils (as a means to consolidate their own political power ofcourse) to an extreme extend which worked against any factory that wanted to set up shop in Greece. Having said that, today Mitsotakis is running rampant and corruption at every stage of the mechanism is at wild levels. I personally know that members of the government charge a fee of 20% to grant an EU funded national project to their suppliers. Millions and millions of euros are being stolen on every level of the state processes. I hope Europe enforces some harder control measures on us because we are unable to manage ourselves. The few will always take care of themselves and ignore the benefits of the many; corruption is too deep into the members of the political parties to change from within.
By socialists, i guess you mean PASOK, which is socialist only in name of course? Because they are centre right...not socialist
@@rafailgounadakis7765 yes i mean pasok
I love your take. He is the most competent we have ever had, yet it looks like we are a corrupt country and that's about it.
@@rafailgounadakis7765 You are not really right wing if you borrow money, be fiscally irresponsible, blow up the public debt, ramp up the number of civil cervants, and prompt the syndicates to run the factories. 😅😅
@@makisxatzimixas2372 haha yes it is a bit of a paradox but its easy for him to look good when he competes with syriza and pasok no?
Very interesting. This is such a good interview format.
Mitsotakis is eloquent using the English language, due to working in New York in his early years. He paints a good picture of himself. The truth is that he is a good leader mainly because he uses socialist practices in times of crisis (e.g. giving out plentiful vouchers during and after Covid) and doesn't hesitate to write off criminal politicians out of the party and the government (parliament members like: Nikas, Amanatidis, Avgenakis etc). On asylum practices, the european press has largely been unfair to him (Interview Quote "you did not go to Samos). However one thing he doesn't admit is that it was really Syriza 2nd term government (Tsakalotos) which returned Greece to fiscal balance and not him.... he takes too much credit for fiscal balancing when it was actually the populist leftists who really fixed it.
And let's not forget that it was his party who was responsible for the 2009 debt crisis in the first place.
Wow, this man and his view on politics I find genuinely appealing. Thank you so much for showing that things can be dealt with differently.
i've come to realise that Alistair Campbell was basically our Prime Minister from 1997 to 2007 wasn't he?
You mean in the same sense as Dominic Cumming?
If you listen to Blair, Campbell did massmedia (primarily English) while Blair did personal meetings, internationally and domestically, with politicians and "stakeholders" as it's called nowadays.
There is no question who was master and who were servants, but Campbell may have been a highly ranked servant, which wasn't always popular among, for instance, ministers.
Fantastic interview guys. I am a Brit living in Greece and after the previous government he is a wonderful breath of fresh air. Always interesting and intelligent to listen to. Well done.
hahaha yeah sure mate
I wouldn't worry about not meeting Mr Sunak. After all, in a few weeks' time he'll be an ex-Prime Minister.
Gay marriage "was important for a minority of Greeks". Check the polls, Koulis
It was for the minority…
It was by all means something good. Also never once in human history the majority was correct. A prime example being the enlightenment.
Get over it and move on. Instead of focusing on the real problems Greece has, people went on the fence for a basic human right. The right to love and to get married. Time to focus on , food prices,gas/ petrol prices, high electricity bills , weak health care, shitty education, migration, high taxes....but noooo, greeks get mad about gay marriage lol !!
In Greece we have a saying that loosely translates to "no one is declared a Saint in their hometown". You can understand the meaning when you juxtapose the praise from non-Greeks to snarky complaints of entitled louben Greeks in this comment section. There are many people in Greece that still dream of the handouts era of Papandreou that fed them or their parents.
The "saint" thing was also my thought 😅. About the handouts: isn't it that in order to keep their popularity up the current greek government is walking somehow the same path like previous ones (PASOK, Syriza)? I mean all those "passes" and "programms" i.e. food-pass, youth-pass, house-renovation programme etc.?
It's the same path that brought GR to the brink of economic collapse not so long ago 😮
@@DG1965 There's a huge difference. Those "handouts" are targeted towards very specific social groups (i.e. the poorest strata of Greek society), and are relatively well regulated regarding the way that they are handed out. Also, all this money is redistributed by taxing more fairly and increasing income from taxes (thus dramatically lowering tax evasion in the country) while at the same time implementing responsible fiscal policies and by making the most out of EU funds. You cannot compare the handouts by Papandreou in the 80s or those of the populist Tsipras with what is going on right now. Spending within your means is a concept that only now is beginning to be processed and understood by the average Greek and the political system and it's Mitsotakis's government who are making this happen.
@@TheRealTopGunZ
How can you tell the type of Greeks that aren't happy with the policies of this man??
The hardest critisim occurred into his very own party.
I suppose the louben Greeks are, most likely there to be found.
That's very good to know..
As for the handouts, obviously you do belong in the close circle of this government that takes part on the contemporary handouts that is only for a few.!!
The specific saying is a verse from the New Testament:
"Truly, I say to you that no prophet is accepted in his hometown." Luke 4:24
Because democracy was restored in 1974, I went to Greece, island hopping. When I arrived in Kos at five in the morning, there was a crowd on land waiting to board the ferry I was about to get off. I was told that they desperately wanted to leave, as Turkey had just invaded Cyprus and they feared the Turks would invade all the Greek East Aegean islands. I decided to stay on the island, so I enjoyed several days with very few tourists around. I then went to Samos and again, very few tourists were there. Unfortunately, 50 years on, the situation in Cyprus still hasn't changed and I doubt it will in the coming years.
Rory looking a bit Mick Jagger
Just saying, Venizelos funded and supported the Triple E(National Union of Hellas), and supported the Pogrom at Campbell in 1931. in 1933 it was planned for him an Plastiras to coup the government and install a Mussolini type Dictatorship, but Venizelos said it wasn't worth it. Venizelos' history is pretty dark after 1923 where he blamed the loss of the Anatolian Campaign to the Jews since the Jews didn't like him and always voted against him, which was one of the reasons why he funded the Triple E.
Like, if people actually sit down and learn about Venizelos, the guy was ready to march into Athens in ww1 and kill all the royal family but Britain told him to chill. Dude is a menace...
At least the agreement to reduce illegal immigration into Greece worked out in the end with Turkiye and Greece. There are now no trojan horses between our friendship and partnership now. Thank you. 🇬🇷 🇹🇷
We see no signs of friendship from Turkeys side contrary to the narrative of those who support it.!!!
hmmm could you google Pylos for me please?
"There are now no trojan horses between our friendship and partnership now." That's a load of bull!
I don’t stand with Kyriakos Mitsotakis and his clan politically (one notable exception is his great-grand uncle, Eleutherios Venizelos - in my view, the greatest statesman in modern Greek history), but I will say this: the prime minister does come across as passably literate, convincingly reasonable, and reassuringly sane (no small mercies in the public sphere internationally these days).
I am 31 and live in Greece. I know not a single person in my circle who votes for any party in Greece. There are only a few 70 year olds up in the mountains and members of secret organizations.
And why is that? What is the reason for such distrust of politicians? In some analyzes I can read that in recent years the Greek economy has improved and the GDP is growing. Is this noticeable for ordinary people in Greece, I mean the improvement in well-being?
@@kananjafarov4563
The reason why I personally distrust politicians, is because I have been made to suspect that every time fertility rate increases systematically, they seem to create "crises" to create unemployment, decrease GDP per capita (corrected for inflation of course) to decrease it again, while at the same time they allow the settlement in the country of people with less good quality of phenotype. So because they act in a way to decrease the native population, sometimes with brutal ways (such as above 10% unemployment rate for many years), while they increase the number and percentage of people with less good quality of phenotype. Which I and everyone in my circle do not want.
The greek economy has worsened (even more) since March 2020, if you look at real GDP per capita, which has decreased.
On the contrary, our "beloved" greek government claims publically, that "GDP increased by 5% in 2022". Which is 100% true, but of course they never seem to also claim publicly that inflation in Greece in 2022 was 9.3%, which means that real GDP per capita decreased by ~ 5%.
Meanwhile, there is not a single party which offers to solve the above problems. Which means that Greece is not a democracy (unlike what the politicians claim it to be),
@@tomorrowneverdies567 Thanks for your reply. The artificial decline or slowdown in GDP growth or playing with numbers can be explained by Greece's huge external debt obligations. The government knows that if they perform well, they will have to start paying off huge foreign debts. But if they have a slow growing economy and a large number of people on social care or pensioners, they may receive additional benefits from EU financing sources. Maybe I'm wrong, the first thing that comes to mind.
@@tomorrowneverdies567 And what do you think about Yanis Varoufakis? I know he is very controversial in his thoughts. I listen to his interviews. He is definitely a deep thinker, but he seems to be a socialist.
@@kananjafarov4563Varoufakis is brilliant! Sadly he has been vilified and scapegoated by his own people and the media.
“States don’t have permanent [bilateral] relationships; they have only interests” - Thucydides (via Eleutherios Venizelos and Henry Kissinger).
And now he’s the one that’s working and getting paid for Greece to go back to otoman empire. In addition to his ancestors that had struggled for the opposite scope.
What we do see here in Greece from this man, contrary to what he claims, is brutally dishonest in whole fields and policies he follows.
A simple way to describe his moto is "One step ahead two steps backward"
Strange what you are saying now since the previous government brought us bankruptcy, capital controls and made Greeks ashamed to say they are Greek. At this moment the country has nothing to do with the past, but you talk about regression... and even in English so you can spread your leftist propaganda properly. Good job.
The greek economy is way better than it was 10 years ago.
Gr debt is even bigger. Greeks at the same time are much poorer. Everything in Greece has been given away for a small percentage of real value, together with state and bank finance to buyers. Nothing left to support growth. But this time, markets don't seem to bother.
@@iparipaitegianiparipaitegi4643
Flurishing numbers impoverished people with the exception of a few around the circle.
That can hardly be called economic improvement.
@@iparipaitegianiparipaitegi4643 says who? Please give examples and make my day...I haven't laughed properly for a while now
Very interesting & informative 👍. Thank you
As you British fellows say "what a burk" . Anyone who grew up in a golden swing must have a lot of empathy and intelligence to step into the shoes of even the last peasant And you need to do that to run a country like Greece . He's more suitable for govern Luxembourg
All things considered.. this is quite a capable leader 👌🏼
Very wise man. Realistic, moderate, smart, honest. A very rare type nowadays in politics.
A very wise man in charge of a coastguard drowning migrant at the med. Very wise indeed. Wake up!
@@mihalishat ah yes because he was there on the boat telling the coastguard to do that, gowan lad
@@policob hundreds of people die this way every year under his watch. He is politically responsible whichever way you frame it.
Althoug incorrect because Serbia started fight for independence in 1804
He changed the rules. Di t forget the 'populist' tsipras allowed around 4milluin refugees from Iraq and Syria to pass through. The minute ND took power they started push backs and other dangerous tactics. Yes, he is totally responsible for 100s of deaths. If not thousands.
great podcast!
26:20 Why Rory would never have been a good PM. Desperate to be liked, and unable to challenge on allegations that have a mountain of evidence to support them
You have very peculiar opinions in Britain on what makes a good politician.
@@jmolofsson He knows about a problem, but doesn't challenge him on that problem. it's cowardly.
This podcast is about geting to know the person being interviewed, not skewer them.
I am Greek and i will also write a comment in english here for no reason...
Hey smartass, it's an english channel, english-speaking people don't speak greek, common sense!
I honestly have the query: why should youngsters engage in politics if they see people like the PM Mitsotakis being a third generation PM? Peoples are either going to own the polity or disengage. They are not the servants or the excuse of hereditary elites.
I have voted twice for Mitsotakis. I understand many of his political dilemmas. However, he does make room for local financial elites instead of the many.
He does adopt the notion of the "tyranny of the majority" when it comes to laws like the right of homosexuals to adopt children (which has falsely been advertised as the right to marriage or equality to marriage).
There is an issue with corruption, like in the electricity production market or media in Greece, no matter if he feels confident on that or not.
When you are a voter there is a balance between voting what is best and what is less bad, if that makes any sense. His first time in power he was clearly the best in Greece. Now he is the less bad and that obviously due to the fact that the opposition is in a predicament.
And illegal immigration is an issue. Greece was never a colonial power to have a moral obligation to accept Arabs and Africans. That is an issue of Britain and France.
So not only elites like his family occupy all the positions of power in politics, not only financial elites like the ones that he promotes occupy all the key positions of the economy, devastated people who are obviously in need of help, but they are illegally here, occupy neighbourhoods and resources.
No wonder the people's of Europe turn to populists. At least they pretend to be listening. Whilst established elites, like the Mitsotakis' family, simply don't even pretend to be listening. That comes from a(n ex) voter.
I am really troubled for Europe's future.
Something said here which is so true - If Europe does not want Africa living in Europe, then Europe needs to take a more active role in Africa to make sure the conditions are improving and there is opportunities for people to stay there.
Since The Prime Minister is a big fan of AI, i was wondering if he'll use it to gather data on real ethnic composition of Greek Society
The Greek government's official position is that the country's population is almost entirely Greek and there are no ethnic or national minorities
However, Greece has become more ethnically diverse in recent decades, with immigrants and co-ethnics accounting for more than 15% of the population
Some of the ethnic groups in Greece include:
Turks: A very large minority group in Greece. Most are tobacco farmers on the Thrace plains and are about half Muslim and half Greek Orthodox
Albanians: Make up about 6-9% of the population
Other ethnic groups: Include Vlachs, Armenians, Jews, and Romani peoples
We don’t have Jews anymore the Germans killed them all Romani are a not even 1% as for Albanians most of them were assimilated heck their children don’t even speak Albanian as for the immigrants we have them on camps or in neighborhoods in Athens they aren’t part of our society the Muslims in eastern Thrace consider themselves Greek
1:04:20 Rory was absolutely wrong here. The Greek extreme-right parties got close to 20% in the European election. And of course immigration is a HUGE issue in Greece despite what the Greek PM said.
@@Akaujnstoburime In English?
It was his party who was responsible for the 2009 debt crisis in the first place, and it were the 'populists' who had to deal with it.
Of course he doesn't mention that! 🤣
Incorrect. The causes of the 2009 debt crisis in Greece are too complex and the process took too long to blame on any one party or one political administration's 4 year term.
@@bozeeke Still his party had 4 years time to handle it, but it were those "populists" of the Syriza 2nd term government (as other posters here pointed out) which returned Greece to fiscal balance and not his party.
Of course he would never say that, because this (like some other things) doesn't fit the narrative of this smooth, slick and eloquent talker... 🤣🤣
@@mori1bund Syriza actually made things worse. They delivered on nothing they promised and they pissed off Germany and the EU to the point that the Austerity package deal turned out worse for the average citizen than it would have been if they were less uncooperative with the EU and the lenders.
@@bozeeke sure, it's not Germany's fault, it's Syriza's fault that Germany did that.
The good old victim blaming... ^^
@@mori1bund No it's definitely Syriza's fault. Had Tsipras and Varoufakis not entered negotiations acting like a bunch of petulant children, they would have gotten a better deal for the Greek taxpayers. And in the long run, it's New Democracy focusing on the economic growth and commerce that has started to improve the economy. Leftists (which you clearly are one if you're defending Tsipras) don't know the first thing about running an economy.
The Solution is Proper Education for All! People need to understand Economics & Geopolitics!
Unfortunately, there's no reason why the EU should rush to have the UK back. Unrealiable partner. EU cities benefitting from London being outside of the Single Market. Why would they want us back right now?
I wouldn't trust us
It is more complex than that -the Russians wanted Brexit. Think about that.
I can’t remember how much the UK paid in as a net contributor. But I’d start with that. I’m a huge fan of the EU as a concept. But even a an EU-Phile I used to get annoyed at ‘paid for by the EU’ signs driving around the UK.
There are plenty of reasons on paper why the EU would want the UK to re-join. Its GDP would increase by $3 trillion. It would regain one of the world's most important financial and tech centres. It would regain many of the world's top universities. It would regain a large net contributor to the EU budget. Having said all of that, there is a lot of personal bitterness in Europe about Brexit which would probably influence their thinking.
There is a reason and that is European defence. In a scenario where Trump regains the White House and starts to renegade on support for Ukraine and condemnation of NATO, there will be a sudden surge in support for a European only military alliance. This will likely be EU led and the members of the EU will want the UK part of that alliance. The threat of Russia is very real to many eastern EU member countries and Putin is very ambitious and power hungry. It is a scenario that I hope doesn't happen, but with a very unpredictable Trump presidency, it could work in the UK's favour if (and it is a big 'if') the UK chooses to rejoin the EU.
Congratulations to Greece on economic progress in recent years. Greece desperately needs to attract the Greek diaspora and foreign talent to move to Greece for Greece to keep growing.
Interesting interview. Smart man!
Watch BBC documentary 'Dead Calm Killing in the Med'.
He couldnt give an honest assessment of what he ate this week, let alone an honest assessment of Europe
I went in thinking this would be another rant (I dont follow Greek politics closely). I expected corrupted and populist messages - and evasion of responsability. But it was quite the opposite. I used to be a right wing populist myself - but I woke up and smelled the coffee in 2014 with the Russian invasion of Ukraine. This politician (and others) - and recent events - show me I made the right decision....and we do love to be right! Great interview. Thanks.
So are you a left winger now?
@@bunnystrasse No - I am into common sense. You see, I am Scandinavian. In 2016 I supported Trump for President. His actions and subsequent events convinced me that the dictatarship of the majority has NOTHING to do with real democracy. So these days I judge people (and politicians) on their stance on the conflict in Ukraine. It is a much more adequate measuring stick of human quality or lack of same.
Nice!
Articulate, thoughtful, and interesting to listen to.
I didn't know much about Kyriakos other than recognising his name and that he was Greece's PM before listening to this, but I've come away quite impressed.
I appreciate the final conclusion and discussion. The interviewee was all over the place. At least his English is decent.
Bit rich of the Greek PM who's family fled into exile via small boats, to talk about defending his border and how great his coastguard is. Should have asked him if his own policies would have accepted his family if they fled to Greece from elsewhere. Any one going to mention the coastguard confiscating phones and pushing boats back into the ocean, or the recent accusations of the coastguard throwing people overboard to their deaths?
You forgot the deciding factors he and his family White + christian so its allowed
Exactly!!!! For him it's ok. For others they're illegal immigrants and get killed.
You should consider yourself lucky if you are 1/100th of the man you try to mock guided by your ignorance. '' Active in the resistance during the Nazi occupation of Crete (1941-44), Mitsotakis was twice arrested and sentenced to death.''
@@georgesotiriou7051 Ok? I didn't mock him. Why do you consider being a refugee a form of mockery? I compared his previous families circumstance with his current policies, and highlighted wide spread reports of their actions. Please describe how his father being in the resistance effects whether or not people should be called out for overseeing a police force which kills people?
@@nathaniellowe5100 Except they don't kill people. It really comes across that you are ignorant about Greek politics. These are the views of a naive observer.
In Greece we say that our Prime Minister is not a normal person, both mentally and emotionally ...
Leftists say that because they have lost every single election ever since he became president of his party.
Isn't this the guy that expanded the greek workweek to 6 days a week even though Greeks work longer and harder than the west already? And isn't this the guy overseeing the Greek coastguard threw migrants overboard to their deaths for 3 years?
Greece was in such a financial mess it needed to become more productive to get out of it- hence 6 day week. As for the coastguard- no excuse for that.
@@alfredthegreat9543 Yeah, nah. People died in Haymarket for the 5 day workweek and we in Romania died during the revolution to join the west's living standard including the 5 day workweek.
Also good luck forcing the Greek people into staying into their country that forces them to work 6 days a week. Hello brain drain.
what you say is WRONG the workeek didnt expand it was just ALLOWED to people IF they want to work 1 extra day and get paid more for that in any case its not imposed to anyone
@@kingtryfon5702It actually legalizes something that was already the norm in Greece. It's actually expected of you to work 6 days a week.
It allows people to work 6 days a week IF they choose to. It doesn't FORCE them to do it. It also protects employees and employers from being illegal by not declaring labour. Essentially, all the government is doing is creating the legal framework to normalize what is already the case in large parts of the Greek labour market. I wonder if people like you just don't understand anything that is even remotely more complex that a newspaper headline or you just choose to parrot your half-assed bullshit in order to push your propaganda and agenda? My money is on the latter.
He did very well in this interview and has brought a lot of stability to Greece. Well done
Best CVC capital fund's political puppet , ever
I'd rather a smart puppet, than an apprentice magician who's never worked a day in his life.
I wonder how Greece feels about it's western neighbours becoming more like it's eastern
You should have stayed for a while in Greece to visit the closed "refugees-camps" on the islands (if they let you in) and see the massive presence of Frontex. Mitsotakis was not screaming about building a wall, like Trump did. He just built it. Together with von der Leyen and with a big portion of violence he went against the Syrian families that Turkey sent over the Evro years ago. And then he went with his aircraft to Poland to take Ukranian refugees to Greece. "Migration is no issue" - for whom? Not to talk about the train scandal, that is not solved with an "I am sorry". The results of European austerity policy are still felt by the majority of the population: poverty, bad health system etc. Mitsotakis is an PM living in Lalaland, who tells us everyday how wonderful Greece is doing. And yet he does not see, that the people are struggling, the cost of living exploded while the minimum loan is 5 EU per hour. His definition of populism was not complete. We remember Trump praising his politics, while he was in office. Mitsotakis is more decent. I think if you had talked to more people in this country, you would have been a bit more critical in the interview.
You mentioned that he might play a central role in the EU. I am afraid that this is possible.
Best wishes from Samos
With a lead in the polls of 15% by the way. The Greek people love this government, unless you deny the polls ae accurate.
Thank God for that wall
actually they won around 37%.
Less than half voted.
You do the maths....
There are 3 left wing parties. Pasok, syriza and communist.
If they worked together they'd win.
Greece is actually overwhelming left wing socialist in population. But, they are always fighting each other. Allowing ND to take power often.
@@alingard1 and thank god for that
@@alingard1 I agree. The success of the right is the result of the failure of the left to cooperate.
Brilliant, simply brilliant!
We will rejoin the Union once most of our freeloading boomers have kicked the bucket ... and what a party we will have to celebrate BOTH issues 🍾🍷🍹🍺
Brilliant thanks, want to see a strong and resilient relationship between 🇬🇷 🇬🇧 🇨🇾
Rory. You liked the last leader of the SNP as well.
Reading the comments left by Greeks, that insinuate that Mitsotakis is some kind of an idiot dictator war criminal, I'd have to say they need to dehumanize politicians less and consider that usually decisions aren't taken lightly and without balancing the consequences.
Let me also remind that this was tha case with Tsipras and the 'kolotoumba' in the 2015 referendum, as many appear to be supporters
Exactly, decisions aren't taken lightly. And every decision that Mitsotakis made from the very first day in office was solely to promote his interests and those of his friends. His first action as a PM was to take the National Intelligence Service, the Athens News Agency, and the Hellenic Broadcasting Corporation under his personal control. His government is responsible for major scandals and the further devastation of our lives during the past 5 years.
The Greek "Watergate" contained a list of many officials, political opponents, ministers of his government, and Greek army leaders. He was eavesdropping on all of them.
The ultimate control of the media led to widespread governmental propaganda and the belief that there is no alternative (TINA). The freedom of press is really low, and Reporters without Borders placed Greece in the 108th and 107th respective places for 2022 and 2023 (out of 180 countries). Please take a look at their latest reports.
The train collision of Tempi with 57 people killed (if not murdered), the refugee pushbacks (with 500-600 drowned next to Pylos), the hyper-profits for oligarchs (in energy, supermarkets, and banking), the extreme privatization (electricity, hospitals, universities, trains, ports, airports, beaches, forests), the totalitarian police control, the devaluation of artists and culture in general, the degradation of public education and healthcare, the most expensive electricity in Europe, the 700k first residences that are and will be auctioned due to non-performing loans. Those are all problems that almost no one reports on.
13-hour work days, 6 days work-weeks. No comment.
It is essential to discuss how devastating this situation is for the younger generations, who will probably leave the country. If we had a robust and separated judicial system, Mitsotakis would be ousted and probably imprisoned.
Tsipras betrayed the Greek people with a referendum he never had the guts to follow. We should search for light in people who have stayed true to their words, like mr. Varoufakis or anyone like him. Mitsotakis is not a solution.
As a Greek I can only tell you that Greeks forget very easily..
Tsipras governed the country and literally did nothing.
No investments, overtaxation, literally killed what was left from the middle class, opened the borders to illegal migrants (remember 'Moria'), did nothing for the young Greeks leaving the country, unemployment rising, and countless fake promises.
In my opinion Tsipras was the worst pm a country could have.
Its not either Mitsotakis or Tsipras.
If you see Greece's rank on freedom of the press you will probably see who rules the country...
Yes its Mitsotakis and the money he gives to the mass media.
No, they just have to say the truth.
2,2 out of 10,4 millions voted for him mainly by civil servants and followers of some oligarchs who inherited some money and think they own the country.
Weak men make hard times and corrupted politicians...
When I moved to Greece I promised not to get into the local politics. Lol. Here I am listening to this. It's interesting to hear Mitsotakis to understand a bit why Greeks whilst living in a beautiful country with lots of enviable traits and assets are generally quite negative in their assessment of their country's economic and political environment. It's also good to hear his opinion on Hungary's govt as my wife is Hungarian and I spent several years living there.
Good work, well done 😊 But, Please have Yanis Varoufakis on ????
He gets far too much air time as it is...
World class politicians. Many don’t like him but Greeks should be proud of having someone so eloquent defending and promoting Greece abroad. The previous guy could not put an English sentence together.
I live in Crete and cant understand how a country as part of the EU does not have one government animal shelter and zero sterilization campaigns. Many islanders have no interest in spending money on sterlization hence the Island is overun with kittens and puppies that are dumped on the side of a road in a box or poisoning to control populations. The only people who help these domestic animals are volunteers. The only government action is great laws to prevent cruelty and breeding but hardly any action. One has to report to the police who are not particularly interested in solving animal related issues ( as expected )
Also what a wonderfully considerate speaker.
This political family has bankrupted Greece at least one time so far ... and the greek economics now show that we are steadily going for the 2nd round , all thanks to this family.
He is eloquent and convincing in English, explaining himself and his policies better than any Greek politician of the last 40 years. In my view, so far, he is successful in trying to keep a balance in an era of profound confusion. Time will tell.
Yanis Varoufakis’s book ‘Adults in the Room’ tells you all you need to know about what the EU have done for Greece.
What saving them from absolute desolation and possibly from them losing territorial integrity ?
Indeed Greeks should wake up everyday and thank the EU for saving them
@@billykotsos4642 ich empfehle Ihnen, das Buch zu lesen.
@@TM-yr3pcnot buying a book to tell me that the eu bailed Greece out of a major fuckup and through this at least partially contributed to Brexit.
There is one thing to consider, Greece had decades of corruption. That has changed to be a lot more modern. Yes - it was forced to. It was forced by the market, IMF, ECB and other debtor nations. Greece lied about their stats and joined the Euro when they were not ready. It was a very hard path. Sadly they chose it.
@@stephenconway2468 if you read the book you will learn that this is much less than half the story. An EU narrative to defend their miscreant actions.
no mention then of NDs creating the conditions that led to crisis in Greece. It was their govts overspending and lack of house keeping that created to huge deficit. Teflon mitsotakis. This interview is far too chummy. It's not exactly pacman is it. Shame , a useful opportunity for a real in depth interview missed cos you got star struck. Elefteros etc.... ooooof
PASOK
I love my Primeminister!!! His feet are sturdy on the ground and his gaze up in the sky
"Immigration is a non issue" -for me, a greek person, 31, and for all of my acquaintances, it is The only issue. Please reverse everything politicians say, and you will get the truth. 😁
...great interview..so informative!
The best ever and most honest Greek Prime Minister. Thanks God we got rid of useless Tsipras and horrible Tsiriza. 👌🏼
The Greek Leftists in the comments have gone bersek! 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
He seems like a great man 🙏❤️
He is
@@georgesotiriou7051Όχι
"Brutally honest". Haha. Nice one lads!
very impressive guy, this Kyriakos Mitsotakis ... highly constructive, no smoke blower, no hot air maker ... this sort of person is necessary to straiten UK politics & UK social economics out ... 🌞
Watch BBC documentary 'Dead Calm Killing in the Med'.
@@mihalishat Very funny doc
I'd recommend looking into the details of some of the controversies mentioned, particually the wiretapping, press freedom, church / state separation, and what's happening off of their coast. His presentation and form is immaculate, but he's quick to say sorry on one hand while blocking and delaying corrective actions for the things he's sorry about.
@@georgesotiriou7051 καλωστηνα την πέρδικα
@@mihalishat Ίσα μωρή λινάτσα
Gentlemen this interview was a cracker and PM I listened to the interview all the way through which was very insightful and politely honest. Thank you all!
The Scots do say the cleverest things when speaking English.