PRESS RELEASE : UK and Greece bolster trade and security cooperation [January 2024]
The press release issued by the Foreign Office on 31 January 2024.
Minister for Europe Leo Docherty met Greek Deputy Foreign Minister Alexandra Papadopoulou in London to review progress on the Strategic Bilateral Framework.
Minister for Europe Leo Docherty reinforced the importance of deepening cooperation between the UK and Greece as he hosted Greek Deputy Foreign Minister Alexandra Papadopoulou in London today (30 January).
Since signing the Bilateral Framework agreement in 2021, the UK-Greece relationship has gone from strength to strength: trade between the two countries has grown to £10.7 billion, our armed forces work closer together than ever before, and we have secured nine higher education agreements in the last year alone for our mutual benefit.
The Ministers agreed to build on these growing ties even further in the year ahead focusing on ongoing work to tackle shared challenges including disrupting organised migration routes, security cooperation, and our joint efforts to reach a peaceful resolution in the Middle East and war in Ukraine.
Minister for Europe Leo Docherty said:
The UK-Greece relationship is hugely important, from our ongoing work to promote security and stability as NATO allies, to our deep people-to-people links.
Welcoming Deputy Foreign Minister Papadopoulou in London, we agreed to drive cooperation on shared challenges facing our two countries, from tackling illegal migration to enhancing European security and our joint efforts to reach a lasting peace in the Middle East and continuing support to Ukraine
The Minister for Europe also extended his thanks to the Greek authorities and people for their crucial role in getting British Nationals to safety during the wildfires in Greece last summer.
Earlier this month, Foreign Secretary David Cameron spoke with Greek Foreign Minister Giorgos Gerapetritis where they discussed the situation in the Red Sea.
