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Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Sharren Haskel speaks at the at the \u201cEnergy Transition Summit: East Med & Southeast Europe\u201d in Athens, organized by the Financial Times in partnership with Kathimerini.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
Plans for a new global trade route linking Europe with India through the Middle East offer huge economic potential and a promise of stability in a region battered by strife, senior Greek and Israeli diplomats said Wednesday.<\/p>\n
Greek Deputy Foreign Minister Alexandra Papadopoulou and her Israeli counterpart, Sharren Haskel, both praised the potential benefits of the proposed India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor, or IMEC.<\/p>\n
They spoke at the \u201cEnergy Transition Summit: East Med & Southeast Europe\u201d in Athens, organized by the Financial Times in partnership with Kathimerini.<\/p>\n
\u201c[IMEC] is the real long-term certificate for stability in the region,\u201d Papadopoulou said. \u201cIMEC is the project that really encompasses regional integration \u2026 [It] will change the whole region from India all the way to Europe.\u201d<\/p>\n
Haskel said Israel sees enormous potential and opportunities in the project.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think it\u2019s going to be huge,\u201d she said. \u201cI mean, everybody are researching now alternative routes as well. Israel sees itself as a key partner in IMEC.\u201d<\/p>\n
The two deputy ministers also stressed the closeness of ties between Greece and Israel.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think there\u2019s a huge potential for a continuation of collaboration, whether it is on the security side, the economical side, whether it is business-to-business, but specifically on infrastructures and energy,\u201d Haskel said. \u201cAnd I think our relationship goes also thousands of years back. These are two ancient civilizations that have shared so much with the world as well.\u201d<\/p>\n
Papadopoulou said the bilateral relationship has survived a string of different Greek governments.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo it \u2026 has the approval of \u2026 the full spectrum, or a big part of the spectrum of the Greek political leaders, which is a guarantee exactly for the duration and the stability of this relationship,\u201d she said. \u201cWe can serve as a good example of close cooperation between two countries that share similar goals and similar objectives about stability, peace, and prosperity in the entire region.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n