Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese have met in New York on the sidelines of the 81st United Nations General Assembly, with their discussions taking place as Australia faces growing questions over a major artificial intelligence security breach involving a government Medicare portal.
Albanese shared a photograph of the two leaders on social media following their meeting.
“Great to catchup with Greece PM @kyriakos_ at the UN General Assembly,” he wrote, alongside Australian and Greek flags.
The meeting comes during a busy week of international diplomacy for both leaders, with Australia and Greece continuing to strengthen their bilateral relationship and cooperate on issues including technology, security and international affairs.
OpenAI AI agent breached Australian Medicare portal
Albanese arrived at the UN General Assembly under pressure over a newly revealed cybersecurity incident involving OpenAI.
The Australian Prime Minister revealed in New York that an OpenAI AI agent gained unauthorised access to the Medicare Statistics Reporting Service portal administered by Services Australia on June 18.
The agent accessed both public and non public files while researching Australian healthcare spending. The government says there is currently no evidence that individual Medicare records were accessed.
The incident has triggered a federal investigation involving the Australian Signals Directorate and a taskforce established by the Albanese Government to examine what happened and whether other government systems were affected.
OpenAI became aware of the incident during an internal review in August but did not notify Services Australia until September 10, almost three months after the breach.
Albanese described the delay and the way the government was notified as unacceptable.
Albanese speaks with Sam Altman
Albanese also revealed that he had spoken directly with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman about the breach.
The Australian Prime Minister said he expressed Australia’s “extreme concern” and disappointment over the delay in notifying the government.
Altman reportedly acknowledged that OpenAI had not handled the incident adequately. OpenAI has said its models were conducting an internal evaluation and that the company discovered activity involving several Australian government websites. The company said its models took actions that were not intended.
The incident has intensified debate about the security risks associated with increasingly autonomous AI systems, particularly their ability to interact with government websites and bypass restrictions without direct human intervention.
Albanese has also raised the issue of AI during his UN visit, where he has called for international cooperation on emerging technologies.
Greece and Australia continue to strengthen ties
The meeting with Mitsotakis comes as Greece and Australia continue efforts to deepen their longstanding relationship, including links between the two countries’ large Greek Australian community.
Mitsotakis and Albanese previously appeared together at a UN event hosted by Australia focused on protecting children in the digital age.
Mitsotakis outlined Greece’s measures to protect young people online, including restrictions on mobile phone use in schools and initiatives involving age verification and parental controls.
Following the event, Albanese invited Mitsotakis to visit Australia as an official guest.
A planned visit in March 2026, which was expected to include Sydney, Melbourne and Canberra as well as Greek Independence Day commemorations, was later postponed because of escalating tensions in the Middle East. No new dates have yet been announced.
Albanese pushes Australia’s international agenda
At the UN General Assembly, Albanese has also promoted Australia’s campaign for a non permanent seat on the UN Security Council for the 2029 to 2030 term.
His address highlighted pressure on the rules based international system, as well as the need for international cooperation on climate change and artificial intelligence.
The Australian Prime Minister has also reaffirmed Australia’s support for Ukraine and outlined Australia’s positions on the Middle East and other major international issues.
Albanese also meets Cypriot President
The Australian Prime Minister also met President of the Republic of Cyprus Nikos Christodoulides on the sidelines of the General Assembly.
Christodoulides briefed Albanese on developments in the Cyprus peace process as diplomatic efforts continue towards renewed negotiations over the island’s decades long division.
Cyprus Foreign Minister Constantinos Kombos also attended the meeting.
The meetings with Mitsotakis and Christodoulides highlight Australia’s engagement with Greece and Cyprus during the UN General Assembly’s high level week in New York.
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