PM confident Greece will receive investment grade this year

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Friday expressed his confidence that Greece will regain investment grade rating this year.

"I am certain that we can achieve the investment grade goal by 2023 as long as people have faith [in New Democracy] and [the elections] result in a strong and stable government," Mitsotakis said in comments after the European Council meeting Friday.

Elections will take place in May, Mitsotakis said this week.

He also rejected allegations by the opposition that his government plans to privatize water supply. "Water is a public good," he said.

Mitsotakis met with his Italian counterpart Giorgia Meloni on the sidelines of the summit earlier on Friday.

The conservative premier said he invited Meloni to visit Athens before the elections for talks on bilateral issues and common challenges, particularly the economy and...