CIA Director William Burns visited Athens and the port of Alexandroupolis for the first time in 11 years, Milliyet reports. Nothing is known about the purpose of the visit. The following is noteworthy: Greece, in addition to Burns, was visited by the US ambassador in Athens, as well as Ukrainian diplomats.
It is reported that the director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) of the United States, William Burns, visited the Greek capital, Athens, for the first time in 11 years on May 30, after which he secretly went to Alexandroupolis.
Located 50 kilometers from Turkey, Alexandroupolis has recently become one of the most important logistics ports in the United States.
According to Greek media reports, Burns, after a series of meetings with representatives of the special services and ambassadors in Athens, headed to Evros, which includes Alexandroupolis. The Greek website Evros-news reported that Burns left Athens alone, accompanied by only a few intelligence officers. The publication noted: "Neither the local authorities of the Greek National Intelligence Service (EYP) nor the Greek police were aware of this visit."
The purpose of the visit is unknown
It is claimed that Burns, who visited Alexandroupolis, also visited the cities of Fere and Peplos near the Evros River. While the Greek intelligence and police, as stated, did not know about the visit to Alexandroupolis, the purpose of the visit, as well as who Burns met with, is unknown.
Ambassador's statement
And the day after Burns' visit, the US Ambassador to Athens, Tsunis, visited Alexandroupolis together with the ambassadors of Ukraine, Bulgaria, Romania and Moldova. In his statement, Tsunis stressed that Greece plays a key role in the energy balances in the Balkans and the Eastern Mediterranean, and especially noted the importance of the floating storage facility (FSRU) in Alexandroupolis. According to the diplomat, Alexandroupolis has turned into an energy center that will ensure security and stability not only for Greece, but also for other countries in the region. "Everyone recognizes the importance of Alexandroupolis as an energy and trade center, and at the same time as a logistics center for NATO," the ambassador said.
US Arms Center
The United States, which sided with Greece in connection with the crisis in the Eastern Mediterranean that broke out in 2020, first turned Souda Bay in the south of the Aegean Sea, and then Alexandroupolis in the north of the Aegean Sea into its military bases. A few years ago, Alexandroupolis was almost not used until American ships carrying tanks and armored vehicles began to anchor here one by one, and this port became an object of universal attention.
The number of military equipment unloaded from US ships in 2021 reached 3.1 thousand units, which was 14 times more than the previous year. The Pentagon uses the term "unit" for all types of weapons, from tanks to ammunition.
In August last year, an article was published in the American newspaper New York Times under the heading "Alexandroupolis has become the center of US armaments." Stressing that military activity in the abandoned port increased after Russia launched a military operation in Ukraine, the newspaper wrote: "This shows how the military conflict in Ukraine is reformatting economic and diplomatic relations in Europe."
According to a New York Times publication calling Alexandroupolis an "unexpected geopolitical flashpoint," when American warships enter the port to unload tanks and equipment, there is a shortage of eggs and cigarettes in the region.
It is emphasized that the transfer of military cargo by the United States to Alexandroupolis causes a negative reaction from both Russia and Turkey, while Ankara considers the deepening of relations between Athens and Washington as a "potential threat."
"Fear of Turkey and solidarity with Ukraine pushed Athens to Washington and provided the United States with expanded military access in several places," the newspaper comments.
Meanwhile, the US Department of Defense (Pentagon) has begun to rebuild the port to transport more cargo to Alexandroupolis.
Geopolitical events forced us to take a step back
Alexandroupolis, located in the north of Greece, near the Turkish and Bulgarian borders, against the background of the Ukrainian crisis, has become an alternative route for the supply of NATO military equipment to Eastern Europe through Romania and Bulgaria.
Last year, the privatization of a strategically important port was announced, but the Athens administration refused this decision. Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said that the port of Alexandroupolis is too valuable to be sold and should remain state-owned.
An empty ship docked at the port
The 290-meter American ship USNS Mendonca, moored to Alexandroupolis in early August 2022, became the largest transport vessel anchored in the port to date. From the previous ships, the USNS Mendonca differed in that it was empty. Equipment and machinery returning to the United States from the Balkans and Eastern Europe were loaded onto the ship with a displacement of about 35 thousand tons of the American fleet.
Menendez also visited
A few days after the departure of the USNS Mendonca in Alexandroupolis in Western Thrace, an unexpected guest appeared — Bob Menendez, chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, whose signature stands under almost every anti-Turkish step and bill in Washington. The management of the port published photos of the "unofficial" visit, and the Greek media wrote that Bob Menendez visited the island of Speze in the Aegean Sea.
During the visit, the Greek media were full of headlines in the spirit of "Alexandroupolis is getting on Turkey's nerves" and wrote that NATO troops would be stationed in Giannuli, located 20 kilometers from the Turkish-Greek border. Local media called Giannuli "the closest NATO base to the Turkish border" and added that there is one military adviser from all NATO members except Turkey in Alexandroupolis.
"Northern Court"
And the chief of the General Staff of Greece Konstantinos Floros (Konstantinos Floros) nicknamed the base Giannuli "northern Court". Suda, located on the southernmost island of Greece — Crete, turned into an American base after the escalation of tensions in the Eastern Mediterranean in 2020. Washington sent aircraft carriers to the Court, and then US Secretary of Defense Mike Pompeo visited the base together with Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis.
