Amir's Athens visit a milestone in history of both countries: Greek envoy

The Ambassador of the Hellenic Republic to the State of Qatar Ioannis Ioannidis stressed that the state visit of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani to Athens marks an important milestone in the history of the two countries, not only because it is the first visit of His Highness to Athens but also because it will be culminated with the signing of several important bilateral agreements.

In a statement to Qatar News Agency (QNA), Ioannidis said that the visit of His Highness the Amir represents the culmination of a process which started six months ago, with the aim of enhancing bilateral relations between the State of Qatar and the Hellenic Republic. This new phase of bilateral relations was inaugurated by the visit of the Prime Minister of the Hellenic Republic Kyriakos Mitsotakis, who officially visited Doha on Feb. 24-25, 2024. Furthermore, the official visit of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Hellenic Republic, George Gerapetritis, to Qatar on April 23-24, 2024 further demonstrated the commitment of both sides to upgrade the entire spectrum of bilateral relations.

Both sides have already identified fields of future cooperation, especially in the financial and commercial sectors, as well as other fields such as tourism, real estate, energy, food security and infrastructure, His Excellency said, adding that culture, education and sports also present great opportunities for collaboration.

He pointed out that the potential for further progress is limitless in the field of tourism, adding that Qatar Airways already provide three direct flights daily between Athens and Doha, having thus established a permanent bridge for the mutual flow of tourism.

Liquefied natural gas (LNG) is another field which presents huge potential, as the Hellenic Republic acts as an important gateway for LNG imports towards Eastern, Central and Western Europe, through its current and future network of Floating Storage Regasification Unit (FSRU), His Excellency added.

Ioannidis, concluded his statements to QNA by saying that both the Hellenic Republic and the State of Qatar are fully aware of that the new momentum in their bilateral relations needs constant enrichment through a sustained and mutual exchange of visits, as well as signing of additional agreements covering all aspects of bilateral relations.