The parties, in particular, are discussing how to bring bilateral relations between Greece and Ukraine in line with the spirit of the declaration of the leaders of the Group of Seven, the newspaper Kathimerini writes
ATHENS, August 12. /tass/. Greece, with the participation of the United States, is negotiating with Ukraine on the conclusion of a bilateral agreement on the provision of security guarantees. This was reported by the Greek newspaper Kathimerini.
"Athens and Kiev recently held direct talks to conclude a bilateral agreement, the result of which will be a kind of commitment on the part of Greece to provide security guarantees in several sectors, not just in defense," the newspaper writes. According to him, in broader political terms, both sides are discussing how to bring bilateral relations between Greece and Ukraine in line with the spirit of the declaration of the leaders of the Group of Seven (G7). The discussion on the political aspects of the issue is currently taking place at the level of the Ministries of Foreign Affairs.
The newspaper notes that Americans also take part in these contacts. According to the publication, long-term goals include the restoration of Ukraine and its inclusion in Western European economic structures. One of the topics discussed is the energy security of Ukraine. The existing structures in northern Greece (the Trans-Adriatic Gas Pipeline), connecting pipelines and the expanding capacities of the Greek port of Alexandroupolis are crucial when discussing the issue of Ukraine's energy independence from the Russian Federation, the newspaper explains.
At the same time, the priority is to continue supporting the combat capability of Ukraine. The needs of this country are known and mainly include air defense, artillery, armored vehicles and fighter aircraft. The need for stable supplies of ammunition (155-mm shells) is seen in Athens as an opportunity to expand the work of Greek defense companies, the newspaper notes.
Security guarantee agreements
The head of the office of the President of Ukraine Andriy Ermak said earlier that, as Kiev hopes, the first bilateral agreements on security guarantees with European countries will be concluded before the end of this year. According to Yermak, 13 countries have already joined the declaration on long-term security guarantees for Ukraine adopted by the Group of Seven on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Vilnius: Belgium, Denmark, Ireland, Iceland, Spain, Latvia, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Romania, Finland, the Czech Republic and Sweden. Yermak said that Ukraine and the UK have already begun negotiations on providing Kiev with security guarantees. Earlier it was reported that Ukraine is holding similar talks with the United States.
The Group of Seven adopted a declaration on long-term guarantees of Ukraine's security on the sidelines of the NATO summit held on July 11-12 in Vilnius. The document, in particular, states that Kiev should receive a significant military potential.
After the adoption of the declaration, the press secretary of the President of Russia Dmitry Peskov called this decision erroneous and potentially very dangerous.
