(ANSA-XINHUA) - ATHENS, 10 NOV - China's COSCO Shipping
investment at Greece's largest port is a win-win project, which
has transformed Piraeus into a successful port, Greek Prime
Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said at the opening of an economic
forum here on Monday. "It has been a good deal for COSCO, it has
been a good deal for Greece... Piraeus has been transformed into
a very successful port. We have made it very clear. We want to
make it the largest port in the Mediterranean," he said during a
round table discussion, referring to Sino-Greek collaboration at
Piraeus in the past decade. COSCO Shipping acquired the majority
of Piraeus Port Authority S.A. (PPA) shares in 2016 after an
international tender, while the Chinese company's subsidiary,
Piraeus Container Terminal S.A. (PCT), has managed the port's
container terminal since 2009. The image of Piraeus has improved
with impressive results posted in recent years, as work for the
port's upgrade and expansion continues. "It is a natural entry
point for goods into the eastern and central Mediterranean. We
want to turn Greece into a logistics hub. You can't argue with
geography. It will always take 8-9 days less for ships from the
Gulf or from the East, from East Asia, to reach Europe, so I am
not willing to give up this opportunity for the country," the
Greek leader added. Mitsotakis also voiced confidence in the
economic outlook for Greece, saying through such win-win
investments, the Greek economy will experience a strong rebound
once the pandemic recedes. "In the post-COVID world, there will
be winners and losers. I am convinced about that. I am pretty
sure Greece is going to be on the side of the winners," he said.
The prime minister believes that Greek recovery will be very
robust. "In Greece, savings go up, so I think people will be
looking to spend once the pandemic is over and businesses will
be looking to invest," he explained. Foreign investors are
seizing opportunities during the pandemic, he said, noting that
the interest goes beyond the tourism sector, which is
traditionally one of the strong pillars of the Greek economy, to
high-tech products and services, green economy, agriculture,
etc. The Greek leader participated in the fifth EU-Arab World
Summit, which is hosted online this year due to the pandemic,
along with other European and Arab leaders. The attendees called
for enhanced cooperation between the Arab world and the European
Union (EU), as well as on an international level, to address the
common challenges that lie ahead. (ANSA-XINHUA).
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