Mitsotakis urges ministers to prioritize government work over election campaigns
Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Monday urged his ministers to focus on delivering the government’s program rather than their personal election campaigns, as he outlined priorities for the final six months of his administration ahead of elections expected in the spring. Addressing a cabinet meeting, Mitsotakis also said a disputed maritime agreement between Turkey and Libya would not affect Greece’s plans, and defended his government’s record on tackling crime and tax evasion.
ND well ahead in polls, but majority wants different gov’t
While the governing New Democracy party retains a double-digit lead over the leading left-wing opposition party in the latest opinion poll, nearly 70% of respondents want a change of administration. The Alco survey for Alpha TV released Monday also found that 55% of respondents were dissatisfied with the administration of Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, who is seeking a record third consecutive term in power in the forthcoming spring elections. It gave ND a 23.4% popularity rating, with left-wing former prime minister Alexis Tsipras’ new ELAS party following at 13.4%, center-left PASOK at 11.4% and the Greek Communist Party at 7.1%. While well ahead of any opposition rival, Mitsotakis’ party seems so far to lack a big enough majority to govern alone, but has little prospect of forming a coalition – with a second election appearing the likeliest outcome.
Six criminal organisations dismantled and 108 arrests made in ongoing OPEKEPE investigation
Six criminal groups engaged in the illegal receipt of agricultural subsidies have been dismantled by the Hellenic Police through the ongoing investigation into mismanagement at OPEKEPE, the Greek agency for the payment of EU farm subsidies, with dozens of arrests, asset freezes and new cases being handled by the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO). Speaking to the Athens-Macedonian News Agency (ANA-MPA), sources at the Ministry of Rural Development and Food, the Independent Authority for Public Revenue (AADE) and the Financial Police said that the investigations have so far resulted in 1,188 suspects being charged and 108 arrests. Twenty-four suspects have been remanded in custody, while asset-freezing orders have been issued against 52 individuals.
Greece signs landmark flying tanker deal to expand fighter range
Greece signed a landmark deal with Portugal Monday to buy three Embraer KC-390 Millennium military transport and flying tanker jets that will start being delivered next year, with an option for another three aircraft, officials said. Defense Minister Nikos Dendias said the government-to-government deal with Portugal, signed with his visiting Portuguese counterpart Nuno Melo, is a game changer for Greece, which currently lacks air-to-air refuelling capacities for its warplanes and will soon be able to greatly expand its fighters’ operational range. Dendias argued that the possession of flying tankers more than 50 years ago would have enabled Greek pilots to stay in the air long enough to stop the Turkish invasion of Cyprus.
ATHEX: Greek bourse bucks European trend
The Euronext Athens (ATHEX) general index closed at 2,602.41 points, shedding 0.64% from Friday’s 2,619.08 points. The large-cap FTSE-25 index also contracted 0.64% to end at 6,659.10 points.
https://www.ekathimerini.com/economy/1320054/athex-greek-bourse-bucks-european-trend
KATHIMERINI: Large apartments will be legally split in smaller ones
TA NEA: US elections: What changes tomorrow
EFIMERIDA TON SYNTAKTON: Electro-shock for households
RIZOSPASTIS: The bill on private debt must be withdrawn! Full protection of households – Ban of auctions for primary residences
KONTRA NEWS: Decadence and corruption have names
DIMOKRATIA: National suicide signed by PM Mitsotakis and Foreign Minister Gerapetritis
NAFTEMPORIKI: The vulnerabilities of European agriculture
DRIVING THE DAY
DON’T EXPECT TRUMP’S EMBRACE: Europe shouldn’t hold out for any major shifts in U.S. transatlantic policy after the midterm elections, senior EU, NATO and U.S. officials told Playbook.
The warning comes as U.S. voters head to the polls today in an election that threatens President Donald Trump’s control of both the House and Senate — and could deliver a major rebuke to his leadership.
Curb your enthusiasm: But even a Democratic win would be unlikely to change Washington’s approach to the Russia-Ukraine conflict, war in the Middle East, trade conflicts and future U.S. participation in NATO.
In fact, Trump may move further away from Europe if his Republican Party fares very poorly in the midterms, according to Phil Gordon, the former national security adviser to ex-Vice President Kamala Harris and assistant secretary of state for European and Eurasian affairs under former President Barack Obama.
Trump could concentrate on areas where he can flex his presidential muscle without fear of being blocked by Congress, particularly foreign policy, Gordon said. “Even in the best-case scenario, I don’t think we should expect any major foreign policy changes.”
Government by decree: “[Trump] leads military force. He has control over tariffs and trade deals. He has the bully pulpit. Even if Democrats take both houses, he can veto bills,” Gordon said.
Including on Ukraine: Trump justified a deal to purchase diesel fuel from Vladimir Putin as a bid to bring down U.S. fuel prices ahead of the election — but he may well dig in further. “Europeans have wanted to believe since Day 1 that Trump would come around” on Ukraine, “but the diesel thing is not some temporary exception to this policy. It is the policy, and the fact he’s getting increasingly angry is not going to help,” Gordon said.
Midterm offensive: Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is warning that Russia is preparing a “massive attack” on Ukraine, under the cover of the distraction caused by the U.S. midterms. Overnight, U.S. mediators announced plans to sit down with representatives of Ukraine and Russia next week, in another bid to broker a deal.
Then there’s Iran, where Trump is threatening to resume strikes on nuclear sites after the election. “There’s certainly a possibility” of this, said Gordon, while adding that “it’s not a given.”
Trade offers European one glimmer of hope. Midterm campaigns have heavily focused on cost-of-living concerns linked to inflation, which critics connect to Trump’s tariffs, along with the war on Iran. If Trump is dealt a severe blow at the ballot box, he may hesitate before slapping new tariffs on trading partners like the EU, according to Bernd Lange, chair of the European Parliament’s Committee on International Trade.
Ducks in a row: But a “lame duck” president could turn into an “angry duck” and Trump could opt to dig in his heels, Lange warned.
Parliamentary diplomacy: MEPs also see a potential shift to the Democrats in the midterms as an opportunity to forge stronger ties with Congress, according to the chair of the Parliament’s U.S. delegation, Brando Benifei.
The MEP said talks are underway to turn the Parliament–Congress dialogue, currently limited to a few meetings a year, into a permanent congressional structure, with its own EU delegation. Previous Democratic-led bills to establish this failed, but a Democratic House majority could revive the plan, deepening cooperation between the two sides of a relationship that “is already quite articulated,” Benifei said.
The bottom line: The U.S. midterms will teach Europe a lot about America’s shifting political mood, and whether U.S. voters are preparing to reject Trumpism. But it won’t bring easy solutions to Europe’s transatlantic woes, as Jamie Dettmer’s analysis explains.
BIG AND BREAKING
HOW TRUMP HURT THE REPUBLICANS: Republicans have been left scrambling to defend their congressional majorities in the face of a midterm shellacking, Jonathan Martin explains. As for what happens once the votes have been counted: expect the biggest fights to be inside each party once the bloodletting begins, John F. Harris says.
POLISH COURT STANDOFF: The battle over who rules Poland continues to be fought in front of the country’s top constitutional court in Warsaw, as Prime Minister Donald Tusk pushes to roll back changes made by his nationalist predecessor. And now, the European Parliament’s democracy and rule-of-law monitoring group will examine the clash, the office of Vice President Sophie Wilmès told Max Griera.
WHY EUROPE NEEDS FRONTIER AI MODEL: Europe risks falling into a “complete trap” if it focuses on industrial AI while leaving frontier models to the U.S. and China, Mistral CEO Arthur Mensch told POLITICO’s Larissa Kögl.
RIGHT-WING COOPERATION DEEPENS
GETTING AROUND THE FIREWALL: The far-right Patriots for Europe is working to convert its growing cooperation on legislation with the center-right European People’s Party into votes for positions of power in Parliament’s January reshuffle, Max Griera reports.
Weber’s red line: EPP chief Manfred Weber reiterated last week that his group must not hand the far right executive power, citing the German conservatives who enabled the rise of Adolph Hitler. But Weber has limited control, as MEPs vote for the Parliament’s vice presidencies by secret ballot — meaning the Patriots could win if enough EPP lawmakers back their candidates.
A test run: In the last reshuffle, the Patriots fielded candidates they hoped would appeal to the EPP: former Frontex chief Fabrice Leggeri and Klára Dostálová, the former Renew member who leads the delegation of the Czech far-right ANO movement. Both lost but secured dozens of votes beyond the Europe of Sovereign Nations, the Patriots and European Conservatives and Reformists groups.
Same playbook: The Patriots are likely to try again. Leggeri, their coordinator on Parliament’s civil liberties and home affairs committee, says cooperation with the EPP has improved. “I think that we have learned how to deal with each other … we have learned how to respect each other,” he told Playbook. Asked whether he would stand again, he said: “If the group wants me to, I’m available to be helpful.”
Finding common ground: The committee is one of the areas where the EPP most often aligns with the Patriots. Leggeri said his group adjusts the wording of amendments to win EPP backing: “Sometimes, in the way we draft amendments, we know that some wordings are less acceptable than other kinds of wordings.” That cooperation could make more EPP lawmakers willing to back a Patriot candidate they consider acceptable.
A high bar: The Patriots would still need roughly 100 of the EPP’s 185 lawmakers to break ranks. That will be difficult if Weber enforces discipline and the Socialists and Renew make the exclusion of the far right a condition of any midterm deal.
20-SECOND PLAYBOOK PRIMER
Brussels is set to unveil the Quantum Act, which aims to push EU countries to work together on quantum computing … but what is that? Quantum computing is a technology that uses the rules of quantum physics to solve complex problems much faster than regular computers. Quantum is considered the next technological breakthrough that could revolutionize many industries, from drug discovery to the military.
TURNING UP THE HEAT
FROZEN FOOD AISLE IS BRUSSELS’ LATEST SECURITY THREAT: A spate of suspected cyberattacks that set supermarket fridge temperatures soaring has put Brussels on high alert — with the issue set to be discussed at the next meeting of the Security College, Agriculture Commissioner Christophe Hansen told Gerardo Fortuna.
What’s cooking? Hansen wants a comprehensive picture of how prepared Europe’s retailers should deal with such attacks: “The repeated cyberattacks on supermarkets are deeply concerning, causing economic losses for retailers and empty shelves for consumers.”
A chilling attack: Supermarkets in Belgium, Luxembourg, Sweden, Ireland, the Netherlands and Estonia yesterday reported refrigeration systems going haywire. In Belgium alone, around 60 supermarkets were affected, along with an IKEA in Mons.
Better safe than … defrosted: Similar incidents in France last month involved hackers apparently tampering remotely with fridges’ defrosting systems. Officials in the Commission’s agriculture department have already met affected retailers to assess the damage.
Hansen insists Europe’s food security isn’t at risk. But, he warned, the attacks are a deliberate attempt to disrupt supply chains and undermine public confidence.
Not this Wednesday, though: The Security College — Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s special format for discussing strategic threats — will take up the issue at an upcoming meeting, with the date yet to be set. Wednesday’s regular College already has a stuffed menu: the 2027 work program, the enlargement package, the migration report, the education and skills package, and the sustainable tourism strategy. Even the Berlaymont can only digest so much.
DASHBOARD
COST OF LIVING LOOMS LARGE IN US MIDTERMS: Affordability is consistently topping voters’ concerns, according to the results of The POLITICO Poll, which independent pollster PF Global carried out for POLITICO over the last weeks and months. In a survey carried out through Sunday, 53% of respondents listed it as one of the biggest issues in the lead-up to the U.S. midterms.
Historically that might have given an edge to the Republican Party, which has long held the reputation of being the side that cuts costs and boosts the economy. But this time around, it’s the Democratic Party that could reap the benefits. In a survey this weekend, 46% of respondents said they’d trust the Democrats more to bring down costs, while just 29% said the same of the Republicans.
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5 MORE THINGS GETTING US TALKING
BELGIAN POLITICAL CRISIS: Two and a half years of political instability has come to a head in Belgium, with Prime Minister Bart De Wever offering the king his resignation. La Libre takes a look back at the country’s fraught “Arizona” coalition.
DIPLOMATIC WALKOUT: The spouses of the ambassadors to Australia of Ukraine, Italy and Estonia have resigned from the Women’s International Club of Canberra, after it admitted Irina Petrakova, the wife of Russia’s ambassador, my Australian-based colleagues report.
VON DER LEYEN’S WIN-WIN PITCH: Von der Leyen takes the stage at the WinWin Brussels Summit this morning (see Agenda for times) to explain how Europe can become the best place for innovative companies to start, scale and lead. Expect mentions of single market, clean transition, AI and … an anecdote about scientists. She’ll attend fresh from last night’s dinner with cleantech CEOs, where she heard firsthand what businesses need to succeed.
MODERN WARFARE DEMANDS NEW MEDICINE: Russia’s attacks on Ukraine’s health system and the changing nature of warfare are forcing innovation on how to protect wounded soldiers on the battlefield.
LATVIAN AIRSPACE THREAT: The armed forces of Latvia on Monday briefly warned of a threat in the airspace affecting two regions of the country, Reuters reports. The military later said the identified object was believed to be on the ground near the Russian border.
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