"There is no room for separate voices on the issue of tariffs, the European Union must have a united response," stressed Deputy Foreign Minister for Economic Diplomacy and Openness, Tasos Hatzivasileiou, in an interview with SKAI on Friday.
Commenting on the tariffs announced by US President Donald Trump, he spoke of "tectonic changes" in the global trade landscape. "It is a historic shift by the US towards protectionism, which shows a completely different approach between the European Union and the United States when it comes to economic and trade cooperation," he said. He also pointed out that "the transatlantic trade relationship is the largest of its kind in the world. This decision will be equally damaging to both sides, no one will benefit from the imposition of tariffs."
Hatzivasileiou then stressed that Europe should and must respond immediately and in unity to these changes. As he said, "the Prime Minister made it clear that Greece will play a leading role in the process of forming a common European stance, which must be adopted by all European countries without exception."
Speaking about the possible impact on the Greek economy, the deputy minister noted that "our exports to the US are significant, approximately 5% of our total exports. In fact, they recorded a significant increase last year, approximately 14%. However, we will certainly have losses in individual sectors, such as food, oil, beverages, cement, compost and others." Accordingly, he said, referring to possible new markets for Greek products, "options are being sought in Asia, such as in India, or even in Africa."
Asked about the meeting that Foreign Minister George Gerapetritis held with his Turkish counterpart Hakan Fidan, he said that "they discussed all the developments and obviously everything that is happening in the US and concerns the entire planet and renewed their appointment for the next meeting of NATO Foreign Ministers on May 14 and 15." He also stated that the High-Level Cooperation Council will be held after Easter, based on the programmes of Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.