Latest News from Greece
Joint liability bonds for a joint European defense against the pandemic
The problem. Mitigating the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic will require a significant increase in public spending to rescue sinking economies and further shield health systems. At the same time, tax revenues will be collapsing as long as economic activity remains suppressed. Budget deficits will inevitably swell, leading to soaring public debt.
Greece urged to evacuate migrant camps
Greece is coming under increasing pressure from the European Commission to decongest refugee and migrant camps on the islands of the eastern Aegean amid the coronavirus pandemic.
The living conditions of migrants on the islands, where some 40,000 people live in overcrowded camps, have turned these facilities into potential public health risks.
More than 1,600 unaccompanied minor migrants to be relocated to EU countries.
A plan is under way to relocate at least 1,600 unaccompanied minors from Greek refugee camps to several European Unon countries, European Commission spokesman Jahnz Adalbert has said.
The relocation was decided on March 6 but has been delayed by the spread of the coronavirus.
Greek PM backs joint EU purchase of patent rights for Covid-19 vaccine, tests
In comments to Germany's Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has backed a proposal by health policy professor and government adviser Ilias Mosialos for European Union countries to jointly purchase patent rights for new vaccines and rapid tests for the detection of coronavirus in a bid to respond more effectively to curbing the pandemic.
Police record hundreds more lockdown violations
The Greek Police (ELAS) has recorded hundreds more violations of a lockdown imposed by the government last month to curb the spread of the coronavirus, registering 1,224 on Sunday with five arrests of business owners or managers illegally opening their shops.
European Commission boosts Greek market liquidity
The European Commission gave a fresh boost to the Greek economy on Friday by approving a lifeline of 2 billion euros for the country's businesses.
Greece had requested support in the form of loan collateral that will be granted to local banks through the Hellenic Development Bank, so as to cover loans for corporate liquidity.
Mykonos under stricter quarantine
The Greek government has announced stricter quarantine measures for the islands of Mykonos and Santorini, both of which are among Greece's premier tourist destinations.
Mykonos, Santorini under stricter quarantine
The Greek government has announced stricter quarantine measures for the islands of Mykonos and Santorini, both of which are among Greece's premier tourist destinations.
Coronavirus update: 1735 cases, 73 dead
Greece's Health Ministry has announced that there have been 5 new fatalities from the coronavirus over the past 24 hours to 6 p.m. (1500 GMT) local, raising the total to 73, 52 of them men.
The average age of the victims is 74.
There were also 62 new confirmed cases, with the total now at 1735, 54.9% of them men.
Nearly 70 Turks on Greek ship tested positive for COVID-19, being treated aboard: Turkish ambassador
Nearly 70 Turkish nationals aboard a Greek cruise ship have been tested positive for COVID-19 and taken under treatment in the vessel off Greece's coast, Burak Özügergin, Turkish ambassador in Athens, told Hürriyet Daily News on April 5.
Ieronymos leaves hospital
Archbishop Ieronymos of Athens and all Greece has exited the Onassis Cardiac Surgery Center, a day after he had a pacemaker installed.
The procedure on Ieronymos, 82, was done using local anesthesia and he is "in excellent health" his office said in a statement Sunday.
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Unlike the coronavirus, Turkey is here to stay
No one expected that Turkey would join Greece in celebrating the anniversary of the 1821 uprising against the Ottoman Empire. Nor did anyone expect that on that very symbolic day for Greece, Turkish fighter jets would violate Greek airspace over the Evros border region and the Aegean Sea.
Partial lockdown extended to 27 April, Covid-19 death toll rises to 68
The health ministry's spokesman on issues pertaining to the coronavirus, Infectious Diseases Professor Sotiris Tsiodras said today that it is unlikely that public health measures to protect citizens will be made harsher, even as it was announced that the current partial lockdown will be extended through 27 April.
Psychological support helpline up and running
A helpline with experts providing psychological support to people struggling to deal with the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on their daily lives started operating on Saturday.
EU approves coronavirus state support for Portugal, Poland, Greece
The European Commission has approved a series of multi-billion-euro state support packages for Greece, Poland and Portugal to help soften the economic impact of the coronavirus through grants and loan guarantees.