Maria Damanaki

Greece’s Maria Damanaki, former EU Commissioner for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries is heading to The Nature Conservancy (TNC) to lead the organization’s oceans division, it was announced Thursday.

Greece’s current European Commissioner, Maria Damanaki, will not return to Greece or Greek politics when her tenure ends in October, Kathimerini understands.

Damanaki holds the Maritime Affairs and Fisheries portfolio and it is thought that she will continue in this field after leaving the Commission. Sources said she has already been approached by international organizations.

Current Defense Minister Dimitris Avramopoulos will be Greece’s representative on the new European Commission, which will be named later this year.

Prime Minister Antonis Samaras wrote on Sunday to Commission President-elect Jean-Claude Juncker, who is due to visit Athens on August 4, to inform him of his decision to send Avramopoulos to Brussels.

Speculation over who will become Greece’s next European commissioner continued during the weekend, with Defense Minister Dimitris Avramopoulos emerging as the frontrunner to succeed Maria Damanaki.

BRUSSELS - The European Commission on Wednesday unveiled an action plan of the Adriatic-Ionian Initiative (AII) that hands Serbia a major role and includes a phased reconstruction of the railway line from Belgrade to Bar.