Reports that Eastern Libya's parliament is considering endorsing the 2019 maritime agreement between Turkey and the Tripoli-based government in Libya that attempted to split the eastern Mediterranean between the two - and at the expense of neighboring countries - is sounding the alarm in Greece and Egypt. Sean Mathews, a journalist for the Middle East Eye covering the Middle East, North Africa and the Balkans, joins Thanos Davelis as we look at why the Turkey-Libya deal is back in the headlines,...
Jun 05, 2025•14 min•Ep. 1241
Last week a $7 billion energy deal involving the United States, Turkey and Qatar, was signed in Damascus, a move designed to revive Syria's crippled power sector. The move raises questions about Qatar and Turkey’s role in post-Assad Syria and about the Trump administration’s Syria policy. The move also comes as Turkey’s President Erdogan is continuing his crackdown on opposition voices. Henri Barkey, a Professor of International Relations at Lehigh University and an Adjunct Senior Fellow for Mid...
Jun 04, 2025•15 min•Ep. 1240
From the “Vertical Gas Corridor” to projects in the Eastern Mediterranean, Greece is stepping up its efforts on the energy front. This is placing it at the heart of exciting new developments that will link the East Med with Central Europe and even Ukraine, while drawing the attention of US energy giants like Exxon Mobil and Chevron. Tom Ellis, the editor in chief of Kathimerini’s English Edition, joins Thanos Davelis as we break down some of the latest developments on the energy front, and look ...
Jun 03, 2025•11 min•Ep. 1239
A recent court ruling in Egypt has sounded alarm bells in Athens and around the world as it seems to put the status of St. Catherine’s monastery in Sinai, a UNESCO world heritage site, at risk. This has prompted reactions at the highest levels, with Prime Minister Mitsotakis speaking with his Egyptian counterpart and emphasizing the importance of safeguarding the monastery’s status as a Greek Orthodox place of pilgrimage. Dr. Elizabeth Prodromou joins Thanos Davelis as we break down what’s at st...
Jun 02, 2025•18 min•Ep. 1238
The US and the EU seem to have agreed to speed up trade talks after President Trump issued and then postponed a 50 percent tariff threat. While many European leaders welcomed this move, it’s still unclear whether Washington and Brussels can bridge the divide between them. Max Bergmann, the director of the Europe, Russia, and Eurasia Program and the Stuart Center in Euro-Atlantic and Northern European Studies at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, joins Thanos Davelis as we explor...
May 30, 2025•12 min•Ep. 1237
This week Turkey’s President Erdogan said he was putting together a team to draft a new constitution, a move that comes in the wake of Istanbul mayor Ekrem Imamoglu’s arrest. Many critics see this push for a new constitution as a power play designed to allow Erdogan to remain in power beyond 2028, when his current term ends. Sinan Ciddi, a non-resident senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and an expert on Turkish politics, joins Thanos Davelis to look into what’s at stake f...
May 29, 2025•15 min•Ep. 1236
Reports indicate that President Trump and members of his administration are looking for ways to circumvent or lift CAATSA sanctions and put arms sales, particularly of F-35 jets, back on the table with Turkey. They are coming up against a challenge that is significantly more complex than simply waiving sanctions. Lena Argiri, the DC correspondent for ERT - the Greek Public Broadcasting Company - and Kathimerini, joins Thanos Davelis as we look into why CAATSA may not be the real obstacle standin...
May 28, 2025•9 min•Ep. 1235
There’s a new bipartisan bill - the Eastern Mediterranean Gateway Act - that’s once again putting the spotlight on Greece, Cyprus, Israel, and their potential roles in IMEC, a project increasingly seen as the answer to China’s Belt and Road Initiative. Endy Zemenides, the Executive Director of HALC, joins Thanos Davelis to break down why this new legislation matters, look at how the East Med can play a unique role as the West turns toward addressing the challenges posed by China, and explore how...
May 27, 2025•11 min•Ep. 1234
This week EU ambassadors agreed on a €150 billion defense lending scheme, Security Action For Europe, or SAFE. EU officials are calling this "an important step toward a stronger Europe." In a move that has raised eyebrows in Athens and Nicosia, the agreement allows for limited participation by third countries – including Turkey. Following the announcement, Prime Minister Mitsotakis called on Turkey to lift its 30 year threat of war against Greece if it wants access to EU defense funds. Vassilis ...
May 23, 2025•10 min•Ep. 1233
Since before President Trump’s return to office, the focus in the US has been on China. As the Trump administration turns up the pressure on Beijing, this is also putting the spotlight on vital infrastructure - from the Panama canal to China’s Belt and Road initiative. This has the potential to impact Greece as well, given its close ties to the US, the investment China’s Cosco made in the port of Piraeus in the depths of the financial crisis, and its potential role in the IMEC corridor. Alexis P...
May 22, 2025•10 min•Ep. 1232
The conflict between Pakistan and India has put Turkey’s arms industry in the spotlight, exposing the limits of its much lauded drones and raising questions about whether Turkey’s arms industry is a loser in this latest round of conflict. Michael Rubin, the director of policy analysis at the Middle East Forum and a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, joins Thanos Davelis as we look into the Turkey angle to the Pakistan-India conflict, and dig into what developments on the ground ...
May 21, 2025•9 min•Ep. 1231
A recent map published by the EU’s Copernicus program is sounding the alarm ahead of wildfire season showing drought conditions and risk assessments across Europe. This is particularly alarming for southern European countries like Greece, which has seen devastating wildfires in recent years. Nikos Efstathiou, an independent journalist who is studying wildfires and how the media reports on them at the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism in Oxford, joins Thanos Davelis as we break down t...
May 20, 2025•16 min•Ep. 1230
A decision earlier this year by authorities in the occupied northern part of Cyprus to allow headscarves in schools has led to mass protests against what many see as President Erdogan’s increasing authoritarianism and a creeping Islamification from Ankara. The protests also touch on broader issues, with Turkish Cypriots expressing concerns about money laundering, crime, and a wider Russian and Iranian presence. Nektaria Stamouli, the deputy editor in chief of Kathimerini's English Edition and Po...
May 19, 2025•13 min•Ep. 1229
Albania’s long-time Prime Minister Edi Rama secured an unprecedented fourth consecutive term in Sunday's election, winning a comfortable majority. This win came on the back of a wave of pro-EU sentiment among voters, as Rama made securing EU membership for Albania a key part of his campaign. Rama was also bolstered by a strong network he has built up over 12 years in power. John Psaropoulos joins Thanos Davelis as we look into Albania’s election, its EU ambitions, and what the re-election of Ram...
May 16, 2025•16 min•Ep. 1228
In a move that took many by surprise, President Trump announced this week that the United States will lift long-standing sanctions on Syria. The decision represents a sea change for Syrians, as UN figures estimate that nine out of ten Syrians live in poverty. This move was also something countries like Saudi Arabia and Turkey had been calling for, with Turkish President Erdogan reportedly raising the issue in calls with President Trump. Steven Cook, the Eni Enrico Mattei senior fellow for Middle...
May 15, 2025•12 min•Ep. 1227
On Monday the Kurdistan Workers’ party, or the PKK, made a historic announcement that it would disband, ending its four-decade-long armed campaign against the Turkish state. The move comes amid a new push to end this conflict, which has claimed more than 40,000 lives and spilled over into Syria and Iraq. Alan Makovsky, a senior fellow for the Center for American Progress and a former senior staffer with responsibility for Turkey on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, joins Thanos Davelis as we ...
May 14, 2025•14 min•Ep. 1226
Since President Trump stepped back into office, and amid escalating competition with China, it looks like one project we’ve been hearing more and more about is the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor - or IMEC. This is reflected in comments from President Trump, in diplomatic moves we’re seeing in the wider region from Greece to India, and most recently in Congress, where a new legislative initiative is looking to establish the East Med as a strategic hub within the framework of IMEC. Geo...
May 13, 2025•10 min•Ep. 1225
From a recent decision in a German court that could pave the way for migrants to be deported back to Greece to a labor shortage ahead of the critical tourism season, migration issues look to be back on the table. This is also the case at the European level, where the EU has gotten tougher on deportations over the past months amid wider concerns about the populist far-right. Angeliki Dimitriadi, an independent researcher and expert on migration, joins Thanos Davelis as we break down how these dev...
May 12, 2025•13 min•Ep. 1224
Friedrich Merz officially became Chancellor of Germany this week, but only after two rounds of voting in the Bundestag - a first for a new chancellor in postwar German history. His initial failure to clinch the position raises concerns about his leadership, and has Europeans asking whether Germany under Merz can step back into its traditional European leadership role. Katja Hoyer, a historian, journalist and author of Beyond the Wall: A History of East Germany, joins Thanos Davelis as we break d...
May 09, 2025•11 min•Ep. 1223
Since the pandemic we’ve seen the Greek government step in to tackle low wages, raising the minimum wage from €650 in 2019 to the latest announcement in early April bringing the gross wage up to €880. These steps come amid both a cost of living crisis and a labor shortage ahead of the summer in the tourism industry, but also other key sectors like agriculture and construction. Yannis Mouzakis, the co-founder and editor of Macropolis.gr, joins Thanos Davelis as we look into the story of Greek wag...
May 08, 2025•12 min•Ep. 1222
On Tuesday President Trump said that the US would stop attacking the Houthis in Yemen because the group had "capitulated", adding that the Houthis had pledged to stop attacking ships in the Red Sea. This move comes after pressure from both regional players like Saudi Arabia - which President Trump is planning to visit - and from within the MAGA camp. Sean Mathews, a journalist for the Middle East Eye covering the Middle East, North Africa and the Balkans, joins Thanos Davelis as we look into thi...
May 07, 2025•14 min•Ep. 1221
President Trump said that he had a "very good and productive" call with Turkish President Erdogan, adding that Erdogan had invited him to Turkey and that he would also be coming to Washington. The call comes in the wake of a new crackdown on dissent in Turkey following the arrest of Istanbul mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, amid speculation that Turkey could send its Russian S-400 missiles to Syria, and as Israel and Turkey are increasingly at odds over Syria. Henri Barkey, an adjunct senior fellow for Mid...
May 06, 2025•12 min•Ep. 1220
While visiting the Turkish-occupied northern part of Cyprus this weekend, Turkish President Erdogan said that his country’s presence on the island will continue for centuries, adding that “whoever doesn’t know this must learn it.” Erdogan’s speech drew a swift response from Greece, and comes as the UN is looking to restart talks on the Cyprus issue. At the same time, Athens is looking to resume work on the Great Sea Interconnector that will link its electricity grid with Cyprus and eventually Is...
May 05, 2025•11 min•Ep. 1219
A Congressional hearing organized by Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission this week titled “Human Rights in Azerbaijan since the COP 29 UN Climate Change Conference” put the spotlight on Azerbaijan’s ethnic cleansing of Nagorno Karabakh - or Artsakh - and issues such as securing the release of Armenian hostages illegally held by Baku. The hearing came days after the commemoration of the Armenian Genocide. Aram Hamparian, the Executive Director of the Armenian National Committee of America, joins T...
May 02, 2025•12 min•Ep. 1218
In January of 1996 Greece and Turkey came close to conflict when the Imia crisis erupted. The US played a critical role in preventing a military escalation through Assistant Secretary of State Richard Holbrooke, and the US ambassadors in Athens and Ankara. Thomas Niles, the US ambassador in Athens at the time who passed away this week, spoke openly about the crisis in the years that followed, noting that the US had made a “big mistake” in not taking a position on Greek sovereignty in the Aegean....
May 01, 2025•10 min•Ep. 1217
The struggle of many Greeks who were sent abroad as children for adoption in the aftermath of the Greek Civil War and the decades that followed is finally coming to an end as the Greek government is now paving the way for them to regain their Greek citizenship. Professor Gonda van Steen, the Koraes Chair at the Centre for Hellenic Studies and Department of Classics at King’s College London and author of the book Adoption, Memory, and Cold War Greece: Kid pro quo?, joins Thanos Davelis as we look...
Apr 30, 2025•13 min•Ep. 1216
One of the legacies Pope Francis leaves behind is his commitment to climate action and the environment, a legacy Catholic activists around the world are maintaining. What many people do not realize is that Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, often called the green Patriarch, played a key role in bringing this movement into existence. Bruce Clark, a journalist, author, and commentator on international affairs, religion, and history, joins Thanos Davelis to explore the story of how the green Patriar...
Apr 29, 2025•10 min•Ep. 1215
Since SYRIZA’s collapse in the 2023 national elections, the focus has been on who can lead the opposition. PASOK is the official opposition in parliament, but now another party is stepping into second place in the polls - the anti-establishment left wing Course of Freedom led by Zoe Konstantopoulou. Nektaria Stamouli, the deputy editor in chief of Kathimerini’s English Edition and Politico’s Eastern Mediterranean correspondent, joins Thanos Davelis as we look into the rise of Zoe Konstantopoulou...
Apr 28, 2025•12 min•Ep. 1214
In a surprise move after the Easter break, Prime Minister Mitsotakis announced 1 billion euros in benefits. This followed the release of data showing Greece had secured a budget surplus of 1.3 percent. The announcement is also putting a spotlight on Greece’s politics, with many asking if Mitsotakis is charting a course for a third term with this move. Nick Malkoutzis, the co-founder and editor of Macropolis.gr, joins Thanos Davelis as we look into Greece’s standout fiscal performance, discuss th...
Apr 25, 2025•14 min•Ep. 1213
Germany’s parliament blocked the sale of Eurofighter Typhoon jets to Turkey earlier this month. This decision follows the arrest of Istanbul mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, and comes amid reports that Turkey is pressing the US to lift CAATSA sanctions and sell it F-35s. Sinan Ciddi, a non-resident senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and an expert on Turkish politics, and Bradley Bowman, senior director of the Center on Military and Political Power at FDD, join Thanos Davelis as we b...
Apr 24, 2025•19 min•Ep. 1212
