Kotzias, Gabriel to meet in Athens Thursday

Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Kotzias will hold talks with his German counterpart Sigmar Gabriel in Athens Thursday.

A joint press conference will take place after the meeting at around 2 p.m.

In a guest article published in the conservative daily Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung on Wednesday, Gabriel, who is also German vice chancellor, said that Berlin should send a new message to the European Union that investment is more important than austerity.

To back up the message, Berlin should offer to further increase its contribution to the EU budget, said Gabriel, a Social Democrat in coalition with Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservatives.