American president Donald Trump called Greece’s new prime minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, pledging to maintain the close cooperation between the two countries, the White House said.
“The two leaders expressed their mutual interest in working together and continuing strong cooperation between the United States and Greece,” according to the White House statement.
Mitsotakis also received a call from Vice President Mike Pence, who congratulated Mitsotakis and discussed a host of bilateral issues that the two countries share.
A State Department spokeswoman separately called Greece “one of our closest allies.”
The U.S. hopes to work with Mitsotakis to “increase regional stability, boost bilateral trade and diversify regional energy options,” she said.
Former U.S. Ambassador to Greece Nicholas Burns also joined in the praise of Mitsotakis. In numerous tweets, Burns, who served in Greece for four years, said he was proud to host Mitsotakis while he was at the Kennedy School at Harvard.
Burns also shared an opinion piece from The New York Times, calling it a “new day in Greece.”
David Harris, head of the powerful American Jewish Committee tweeted that Greece was in “very able hands” after meeting Mitsotakis on his first, full day in office.
Ironically, despite his far-left roots, outgoing Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras actually built a close relationship with the U.S. under both Trump and former president Barack Obama.
At the strong encouragement of the U.S., Tsipras also resolved the three-decade conflict over the name of neighboring North Macedonia, placating NATO and the European Union, as well, who were worried about Russian influence in the region.
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