Antonis Samaras

Evangelos Venizelos, former deputy prime minister of Greece and former minister of foreign affairs, speaking with Kathimerini English Edition Editor Tom Ellis as part of the Delphi Economic Forum on Thursday, discussed the role of PASOK in a future governmental coalition, stating that, having borne the brunt of the fallout from the financial crisis, it cannot just be a complement to any governm

An agreement to build a road linking Kalamata, Rizomilos, Pylos and Methoni in Messinia, along the southwestern section of the Peloponnese was signed at Kalamata airport on Friday, in the presence of Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and by former premier Antonis Samaras, under whose government the project began.

Parliament Speaker Kostas Tasoulas has referred SYRIZA MP Pavlos Polakis to the legislature's Ethics Committee in the latest episode in the vendetta between the SYRIZA MP and Development Minister and New Democracy vice-president Adonis Georgiadis over charges that the latter as health minister received kickbacks from the pharmaceutical giant Novartis.

Former prime minister Antonis Samaras one week ago adopted an aggressive stance on Greek national issues.

He did so in a flashy manner on the eve of the resumption of exploratory talks with neighbouring Turkey in Istanbul.

Recently, three former US presidents - Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama - announced that they would get the coronavirus vaccine, and offered to do so publicly to help better inform and persuade Americans who are skeptical about its safety.

Greek governments, from Konstantinos Mitsotakis (1990-03) to Antonis Samaras (2012-15), followed an ineffective secret diplomacy, while accepting, without admitting it, a double (or triple) name for what was then the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM), with the word "Macedonia" included in every iteration.

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis ruled out any possibility of early elections on Friday, saying his government will see out its four-year term, in response to suggestions by opposition SYRIZA leader Alexis Tsipras that he would spring a surprise with snap polls after the summer. 

Former justice minister Dimitris Papangelopoulos on Thursday requested a month-long extension to prepare his defense to a parliamentary committee investigating allegations that he sought to influence a judicial probe into the Novartis bribery affair.

The three trends within the ruling party are well known and are generally represented by current Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and former premiers Antonis Samaras and Costas Karamanlis.

Testifying on Friday in the probe into the alleged bribery scandal implicating Swiss pharmaceutical company Novartis and Greek politicians and doctors, deputy prosecutor Ioannis Angelis alleged that there was an organized plan to jail three politicians, including former prime minister Antonis Samaras, on the eve of national elections last year.