Greece declares four days of national mourning for Costas Simitis
The Greek government has declared four days of national mourning following the death of former prime minister Costas Simitis, with a state funeral to honor his legacy.
Cairo tripartite summit spotlights Syria turmoil
In what is arguably a pivotal moment for Middle Eastern diplomacy, Greece’s prime minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, is set to travel to Cairo on Wednesday for a tripartite summit with Egypt and the Republic of Cyprus. The timing of the meeting coincides with evolving dynamics in Syria and broader regional volatility, making it critical.
Hellenic Navy to monitor Turkey’s ‘Blue Homeland’ exercise in the Aegean
The Hellenic Navy is closely monitoring developments in the Aegean, particularly in the area between Rhodes and Cyprus, which is expected to serve as the main operational zone for the Turkish fleet during the “Mavi Vatan” (Blue Homeland) exercise, set to begin on Tuesday.
Archbishop Anastasios in critical condition – PM Mitsotakis visits Evangelismos hospital
The health condition of Archbishop Anastasios of Albania is considered critical by his attending doctors, according to a new medical statement from the Evangelismos Hospital. In the last few hours, the health of Archbishop Anastasios has shown signs of deterioration. Earlier Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis visited the “Evangelismos” hospital where Archbishop Anastasios of Albania is being treated.
ATHEX: Bourse at high unseen since May
The Greek bourse reversed early losses on Friday to close with gains for the third session in a row, taking its benchmark to the highest point since last May. Notably, Athinon Avenue bucked the dominant trend on the day in markets on both sides of the Atlantic. The 1,500-point milestone is not far away for the main index, but the bourse needs investor interest to expand more for mid- and small-caps if it is to sustain its growth momentum of the last few weeks.
https://www.ekathimerini.com/economy/1257793/athex-bourse-at-high-unseen-since-may
TA NEA: Kostas Simitis 1936-2025: His legacy
EFIMERIDA TON SYNTAKTON: Traffic Code: incoherent new version
KONTRA NEWS: The new Chinese nightmare has reached Europe
DIMOKRATIA: Simitis’ black bible
NAFTEMPORIKI: Double threat for the European economy
DRIVING THE DAY: WHO’S IN CHARGE HERE????
ON THE WAY OUT — TRUDEAU: Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said he’ll step down once his party finds a replacement leader. More below.
ON THE WAY IN — TRUMP: On the anniversary of the Jan. 6 insurrection by his supporters at the U.S. Capitol, Congress certified Donald Trump’s election without incident.
ON THE WAY OUT — AUSTRIA’S CENTER-RIGHT CHANCELLOR: Karl Nehammer said he’ll resign as Austrian chancellor effective Friday after coalition talks between his center-right Austrian People’s Party (ÖVP) and centrist and left-leaning parties failed, Der Standard reports in its excellent live blog. While it’s unclear who will be the caretaker head of government while talks continue, look for Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg to step in for Nehammer at international gatherings.
ON THE WAY IN — AUSTRIA’S FAR-RIGHT LEADER: Herbert Kickl, leader of Austria’s anti-immigrant Freedom Party (FPÖ), got the go-ahead to start negotiations with the ÖVP — giving him a serious shot at the chancellery. (Then again, “Europe” could be a major sticking point, Austrian political scientist Peter Filzmaier noted in a television interview, saying the FPÖ’s embrace of “targeted provocation” as a political tactic wouldn’t fly when Kickl is sitting around the European Council table.)
OUT OF OFFICE — URSULA VON DER LEYEN: Amid all this chaos, Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is out sick, with canceled events through mid-January. More below.
IN YOUR FEED, IN THE NEWS, ALMOST IN GOVERNMENT, MAYBE INTERFERING, MAYBE IN TROUBLE: Elon Musk. Read on.
MUSK, BECAUSE WE MUST
PRESSURE ON BRUSSELS GROWS: Ahead of Musk’s planned live chat with Germany’s extreme-right leader on Thursday, European lawmakers are piling pressure on the European Commission to act, Pieter Haeck and Nick Vinocur report.
The problem is his boost, not his bluster: The core argument of those in favor of coming down on Musk using tech regulation is the following: (a) There’s reporting that Musk tweaked the X algorithm to promote his own posts; and (b) the fact he’s now wielding that to push his extremist views on European politics amid elections can be considered a systemic risk and thus a potential violation of the DSA.
Commission line: The Thursday livestream event itself is covered by freedom of speech and is of no concern, Commission spokesperson Thomas Regnier said Monday. What the Commission will keep an eye on is whether the stream gets a boost on the platform, he added.
Political deadline 1: The tech mogul is slated to hold his livestream chat on X with AfD leader Alice Weidel on Thursday.
Political deadline 2: In 13 days, Musk will become part of the United States administration as head of the Department of Government Efficiency. Threatening EU probes or even a fine could mean a major confrontation with Washington.
… both to be missed: The Commission, German regulators and X have a date for a roundtable discussion on Jan. 24 to discuss risks related to next month’s German election.
ITALY’S STARLINK FLIRT ADDS TO WOES: As if the friction with X wasn’t enough, critics also lashed out against ongoing talks between the Italian government and Musk-owned SpaceX for secure government telecommunication services.
Meloni to Musk — Call me, maybe? Rome is in talks with SpaceX over a possible €1.5 billion deal for secure telecoms. Sam Clark, Hannah Roberts and Josh Posaner have the full story, noting the move is “certain to infuriate European industry.”
How it’s playing in Elon-land: Musk’s man in Rome, Andrea Stroppa, interpreted that “infuriate” line as a “veiled threat (pizzino) to Italy government from Bruxelles establishment media.”
Playbook thought bubble: You’d think platforms trying to dodge responsibility for their users’ problematic content would know better than to conflate the message and messenger.
AND SPEAKING OF MUSK: He’s embroiled in a lovers’ tiff with Reform UK Leader Nigel Farage — but don’t expect that to derail the Brexiteer’s meticulous plan to take over Britain, report Andrew McDonald and Noah Keate.
DOWN AND OUT IN BRUSSELS AND PARIS
VDL’S DOWN, BUT NOT OUT: Ursula von der Leyen is too sick to work from home — she famously boards at the Berlaymont — but she’s still on the job as she fights severe pneumonia from Hannover, Germany. And she’s evidently determined not to hand the reins over, even temporarily, to her designated substitute, Commission EVP Teresa Ribera.
That’d be awkward: Commission spokespeople confirmed that Ribera, chief for both climate and competition, is second in the EU executive’s line of succession, as Seb Starcevic reports. But Ribera, the European Socialists’ top Commission pick, faced fierce resistance from von der Leyen’s right-leaning European People’s Party during the College confirmation process.
Let’s call the whole thing off: There’s “no need to designate” a stand-in, Commission chief spokesperson Paula Pinho told reporters, with von der Leyen remaining in “daily contact.” But she’s opting to cancel rather than designate: a planned gathering of the College of Commissioners in Poland later this week has been postponed, for example. It’d be up to Ribera to chair that meeting if it took place in von der Leyen’s absence.
MACRON STEPS UP WHILE VDL’S DOWN: Don’t count French President Emmanuel Macron out yet. (At least, he would really prefer that you not.) In a foreign policy speech Monday, Macron delivered strikingly candid remarks about Ukraine’s need to be “realistic” on territorial issues and Musk’s role in building a “reactionary movement,” as Clea Caulcutt reports from Paris.
Come on over: Macron also slipped in a canny plan to reclaim influence, noting he would invite European leaders to France in February to discuss EU priorities. “From March onward, we’re going to be driving forward this ambition to have, precisely, a Europe that meets these challenges,” he said. Details are scarce so far, but it’s unmistakably a bid to pry back power from von der Leyen.
KICKING HIM WHILE HE’S DOWN: Von der Leyen arguably vanquished her other frenemy, ex-Council President Charles Michel. But if she’s sick and tired of bingeing Christmas movies, we must recommend our colleague Gabriel Gavin’s book, “Ashes of Our Fathers: Inside the Fall of Nagorno-Karabakh.” Today, we’re publishing this excerpt, titled: How Charles Michel waded into a minefield in Nagorno-Karabakh.
ROMANIAN ELECTION
ROMANIA’S D-DAY ON E-DAY: Romania’s government wants to rerun the presidential election on March 23, with a runoff on April 6. For that to happen, it needs to pass an order by Wednesday at the latest to make it official. But mixed signals from members of the governing coalition cast doubt about whether that’ll occur, POLITICO’s Carmen Paun writes in to report.
For those who forgot everything over the break: Romania’s Constitutional Court made the unprecedented decision last month to cancel the country’s presidential election and order a do-over due to suspicions that a little-known candidate, ultranationalist Russia-sympathizer Călin Georgescu, was propelled by Moscow into first place in the Nov. 24 vote.
Damning docs: The decision came after declassified intelligence documents alleged that paid influencers, along with members of extremist, right-wing groups and people with ties to organized crime, promoted Georgescu’s candidacy online (especially on TikTok) ahead of the first round vote. The documents didn’t directly state that Russia tried to swing the election — but they strongly suggested it. No more evidence has come out since the election was canceled to substantiate the allegations.
Sore winner: Georgescu has unsuccessfully appealed the Constitutional Court decision domestically and has also appealed to the European Court of Human Rights.
New election, same result? A poll commissioned by Bucharest Mayor Nicușor Dan, who is running for president, showed at least 40 percent of Romanians plan to vote for Georgescu.
SERBIA
VUČIĆ FEELS THE HEAT: Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić appears increasingly shaken by the latest round of student protests spreading through the country, Šejla Ahmatović reports. Over the weekend, Vučić warned that a new separatist movement is fomenting in Serbia’s autonomous northern province of Vojvodina, alleging that anti-government forces will launch a new platform there on Jan. 11. (A local political leader dismissed the accusation as “made up.”)
Context: Novi Sad, the capital of Vojvodina, is the site of a train station collapse in November in which 15 people died. In response, students demanding accountability have taken to the streets in numbers not seen since the turn of the century. The protests have garnered significant support, with a gathering in Belgrade drawing 100,000 people on Dec. 22 — the largest since the demonstrations that preceded the fall of Slobodan Milošević in 2000.
This time it’s different: Protests erupt frequently in Serbia, but rarely lead to real change. This time, however, they’ve led to charges against a minister and multiple state officials, and in-fighting within the ruling party. That could make Vučić unusually vulnerable.
Vojvodina diversion: Serbian lawyer and human rights activist Milan Vujić told Šejla that Vučić’s fear-mongering claims about Vojvodina were a way of deflecting attention away from his current plight. Because “students mount exceptional resistance to governmental threats and violence, Vučić resorts to a recycled approach,” Vujić said. “Introducing a polarizing topic, targeting usual suspects — all with the aim to divide and rule.”
O CANADA
TRUDEAU OUT: Justin Trudeau on Monday announced he will step down as Liberal leader as soon as his party finds a replacement. That raises the question of who will step into his shoes ahead of Canada’s next federal election, scheduled for October but now likely to take place this spring.
Runners and riders: Our Canadian colleagues have this comprehensive guide to those who may succeed Trudeau as Liberal leader. Among them are Mark Carney, the former governor of both the Bank of Canada and the Bank of England … Chrystia Freeland, the former deputy prime minister who is well known in Brussels for her role in negotiating CETA, the EU-Canada trade deal, and for her stint as the FT’s Moscow bureau chief … and Mélanie Joly, the current foreign affairs minister.
IN OTHER NEWS
JUST TAKE THE GAS: Hundreds of thousands of people in Transnistria have been left without heating and hot water after Russia’s state energy firm Gazprom ended gas exports to the region on Jan. 1, when an agreement to transit gas through neighboring Ukraine expired. Authorities in the breakaway region should suck it up and accept offers of help from the Moldovan government, the European Commission said Monday. Gabriel Gavin and Victor Jack have the story.
LEAKY AS THE EIB: Jean-Christophe Laloux, the European Investment Bank’s head of operations, warned in a leaked internal email obtained by the FT of the potential for a “reputational disaster” if the EU applies its new sustainable reporting rules this year, which would require a taxonomy classifying green investments.
KELLOGG POSTPONES EUROTRIP: Donald Trump’s incoming Ukraine envoy Keith Kellogg has postponed a planned early January trip to Kyiv and other European capitals, Reuters reports. The trip will now go ahead after Trump officially takes power on Jan. 20, Reuters says, citing four sources with knowledge of Kellogg’s plans.
BAUER’S FIGHTING WORDS: Western rating agencies, banks and pension funds are “stupid” to avoid investing in defense, one of NATO’s top officials Admiral Rob Bauer warns in a punchy FT interview. “Why are you not convinced by trillions of dollars? What has happened to your business instinct? Are you stupid?” Bauer blasted. “If you are looking at return on investment … there’s so much money to be spent over the next 20 years.”
SÉJOURNÉ INTERVIEW: Catch up on Giovanna Faggionato and Aude van den Hove’s interview with EU industry czar Stéphane Séjourné here.
EYES ON ANKARA: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said Monday that Ankara is ready to step in to prevent a break-up of Syria following a rebel overthrow of the regime of President Bashar Assad last month.