The government is not opposed to the possibility distant work political leaders, said a government spokesman, Yannis Oikonomoupointing out that in each pre-election campaign, it is a matter of consultation between the parties.

During a briefing for political editors, a government spokesman added that during the reign, the Greeks had the opportunity to see several political confrontations, debates and dialogues in parliament that had not been seen before.

When asked if we should prepare for the April 9 elections, based on the Prime Minister’s statement that they were not too late, he replied that “whatever the Prime Minister says, he means it.” When asked how many cabinet councils we have ahead of him, he noted that this will be determined depending on the regularity of questions until the dissolution of parliament, which will be announced by the prime minister.

When asked how he “reads” the decision of former Prime Minister Kostas Karamanlis not to stand in the upcoming parliamentary elections, he replied: “I read how he wrote it.” “He left no room for misinterpretation. He supports the government of N.D. and a faction that has worked consistently for 50 years and will be at the forefront of the re-election of Kyriakos Mitsotakis and the ND,” he added.

Shots in SYRIZA

With regard to SYRIZA’s criticism of the “potkhen esses” bill, a government spokesman said that these are provisions that modernize the process and make the structure more functional.

A government spokesman also accused SYRIZA, in connection with the adoption of the bill of the Ministry of Finance, that, “despite the undeniable benefits for citizens, it has turned away and insists on the absence of a parliament imposed by Mr. Tsipras, who believes that his party is something special and can offend democracy by scorning and undermining parliamentary procedures.”

She directly accused him of petty political conjunctures and stated that he proved that he was getting divorced even with the demands of society. “They have been shown to be constantly present in toxicity and separation, but never in social support measures. But it wasn’t the first time,” he said.

“The international situation, as you know, has created many new problems, but at the same time exacerbated many others that the previous government hushed up in the past, allowed them to languish and torment citizens,” said a government spokesman.

“Our government proves in practice that it listens to society, listens to citizens, meets their concerns and develops functional and mutually beneficial solutions within the framework of effective management and economic opportunities of the state. Because for us, politics – as we have already said and, above all, as we have proved – is a solution to problems, and this is our main difference, this is the main difference between the government and SYRIZA, for which politics is toxicity, separation, not to mention easy promises. he added.

Visit Blinken

Referring to US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken’s visit to Athens, the government spokesman highlighted the main conclusions of the State Department’s meetings with Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Foreign Secretary Nikos Dendias. .

As he noted, it is generally accepted that Greek-American relations are at the best level in history. He stood on the following points:

• Of particular importance is the recognition of the leading role of Greece in the region, as well as its transformation into an energy transmission center, G. Economou said.
• As a government representative noted, during the discussions it was indicated that the climate that has developed after the earthquakes in the neighboring country between the peoples of Greece and Turkey, after the immediate response and assistance of our country, can become a starting point for improving our bilateral relations.
• An important event, according to a government spokesman, is the start of the 4th round of the Strategic Dialogue between Greece and the United States. In this context, the two countries seized – as stated in the joint communiqué – this opportunity to highlight their increasingly strong bilateral as well as transatlantic relationship based on our common values ​​as well as our interests. We reaffirmed our intention with the United States to strengthen our cooperation on regional issues, on defense and security, on humanitarian challenges, on disaster preparedness and other natural disasters, on energy and the environment, on counterterrorism, on trade, investment, the whole bond between our two peoples.
• Greece and the United States, as indicated in the joint communique, also discussed developments in the Eastern Mediterranean, emphasizing the importance of respect for sovereignty and sovereign rights, as they are based on international law, including the law of the sea, the government noted. representative .
• Both sides stressed our country’s efforts to modernize the armed forces, as well as the continued cooperation between Greece and the United States in the field of defense equipment and F-35 supplies.
• The United States stressed the great geostrategic importance of the port of Alexandroupolis, which has become a vital supply hub for NATO’s defense posture.
• Greece and the United States stressed the urgent need for continued cooperation in the field of energy security in our region and in Europe as a whole, as well as diversification, the need for which has increased since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
• Greece has highlighted the importance of natural gas discoveries by Israel, Cyprus and Egypt as potentially valuable sources for diversifying the energy mix in our region, which, among other things, highlights the importance of our own offshore natural gas exploration programs. Crete and the full use of the potential of the Eastern Mediterranean.

“Our government, with its reliable and consistent foreign policy, is steadily strengthening the international position of our country, increasing its prestige, securing its increased geostrategic and geopolitical role, strengthening the role of a factor of stability and law and order in the wider Eastern Mediterranean region,” the government spokesman said.

Out-of-court mechanism

Mr. Economou spoke about the rules adopted yesterday in the draft law on the acquisition of seized property into the private ownership of the state. He explained that, among other things, “the bill passed yesterday provides a final solution for households and businesses that have been held hostage for decades and whose assets are vulnerable and essentially in doubt. Secondly, the mechanism of out-of-court settlement of debts is being improved and, in particular, the scope of its application is expanding.”

He explained that new categories of debts are included, such as debts in favor of third parties that have been collected by the tax administration, the debtor is given the opportunity to include in this procedure the service of an informed or already settled and informed debt, an obligation is introduced to substantiate his consent or disagreement to the proposed regulation as financial institutions and debtors. In addition, procedures are simplified and the prepayment penalty is limited in time.

In addition, the ENFIA exemption for 2023 on property in disaster-affected areas is extended, the wages of workers at the LARCO shipyards and the shipyards in Scaramangas are being increased, important expatriate issues are being regulated, and tax incentives are being established for those employed in floating gas cylinders.

“Home Basket”

Regarding the expanded Household Basket, a government spokesman noted that as of Wednesday, it is in its 17th week of implementation, with prices stable or lower on 91% of the products on its lists, but also with significant additions. Since yesterday, the basket has been expanded with nine categories of products, and the “Lenten basket” has also been implemented, which will be valid until Good Saturday with lean products.

He also added that, in agreement with the President of the Varvakiou Fish Market in Athens, a pilot “Home Basket” was launched at the Fish Market for the entire Lent. “It is extremely important that a significant reduction in prices has been achieved compared to last year,” he said.

He stressed that based on the new price lists brought to the attention of the Ministry of Development and Investment by supermarket chains on Wednesday, out of a total of 864 items in the “Home Basket” that are fully comparable, the price has been reduced by 97 (11%), 692 ( 80%) remains stable, while in 75 (9%) it has increased.

He also said that from this week, the Ministry of Development is presenting a full detailed comparison table with the total cost of each basket by networks, so that consumers can see which networks have decreased and by how much, and which have increased and by how much.

At this point, he stressed that “while there is little we can do as a country to prevent international accuracy, anyone who says otherwise is lying, we can and have done a lot to limit the problem.”

He noted that “we did not throw in the towel” and referred to the measures taken to support society in connection with the increase in energy prices, as well as the accuracy in the market, with the Household Basket, Market Pass, buy control.

“The problem remains, but we all need to understand that things would be much worse if we didn’t fight it, if we didn’t implement the policies that I described. The government does not lose sight of its goal of dealing with major import crises and limiting their impact on the lives of citizens. All our attention, all our energy has been focused on this direction for several months,” he said.

G. Economou added that the proof of this is the fact that yesterday, with the completion of the second day of the Market Pass platform, more than 1.2 million applications were approved by the evening. A measure based on resources secured by the government from taxing the windfall profits of the two companies benefiting 85% of Greek households.

When asked about the situation with Sophia Nicolau, he said that he had nothing to add and that her versions were known, as well as the statement of the ND, while he noted that the ballots of the ruling party would be announced in the near future.

^{With information from APE-MPE}