Ties with India looking up with Modi visit

Narendra Modi’s visit to Athens on Friday is especially significant for Greek foreign policy as it is the first official visit by an Indian prime minister to Greece in 40 years. Indira Gandhi, then premier of India, visited Greece in 1983, at the invitation of her counterpart, Andreas Papandreou.

According to sources, Friday’s meeting is essentially a “kick-off,” as another meeting between Foreign Minister George Gerapetritis and his Indian counterpart will follow between September 18-21 in New York, on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly. 

Greece and India are expanding their partnership, with an initial focus on defense. The Indian Air Force took part in a European military exercise staged in Greece this spring, while India and Greece held a combined naval exercise in Crete. 

Furthermore, Greek fighter jets are expected to take part in an Indian Air Force drill for the first time in September. Cooperation will also be developed on the level of trade, with the two leaders likely to sign multiple agreements, with an emphasis on investment and shipping. According to sources, India is looking to use the Port of Piraeus for European exports, which Gerapetritis also noted as a potential area of collaboration. 

Considering the staggering size of India’s population and the country’s growing global significance, the goal of Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and his government is to cast Greece as India’s “bridge” to the European Union, something that Gerapetritis mentioned in an interview with the international agency Wion. 

Setting the tone of Friday’s visit, government spokesman Pavlos Marinakis has referred to the historical ties that bind the two countries. In recent comments, he attached great significance to the resumption of high-level contacts “with this important country,” saying that Athens looks forward to “upgrading our relationship to a strategic one.”