Greece

Energy costs, overtaxation, non-salary costs, problematic financing and licensing are the five main obstacles preventing Greek manufacturing from gaining sustainable momentum, according to a Foundation for Economic and Industrial Research (IOBE) survey.

Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras and New Democracy leader Kyriakos Mitsotakis clashed in Parliament on Tuesday ahead of a vote to revoke planned budget cuts that had been slated for January, trading barbs on economic policy as well as Greece's contentious name deal with the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM). 

Students from Thessaloniki's Aristotle University on Monday issued a fresh appeal for the protection of its property and an end to criminal activities on its premises in a letter addressed to the government, the Education Ministry and the Hellenic Police. "Drug trafficking and its consequences...

The tension was palpable in Greek Parliament on Tuesday as the opposition lashed out at the government during a debate on legislation that included a clause revoking a bailout commitment for further pension cuts.

Most Greeks are optimistic about the future, with 57.1 percent of respondents in a new survey carried out by About People saying that they have hope for a better year in 2019. This is an increase of 4 percent from last year and of 10 percent from the year before that.

The US-Greece Strategic Dialogue starts on Thursday in Washington, a process that signals a significant deepening of bilateral relations.

The United States has made a "strategic decision" whereby Greece is the "ideal partner" in the quest to bring stability and prosperity to a "complex" region, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Matthew Palmer has said.

The Perpetual Holy Synod of the Church of Greece is meeting on Tuesday to address concerns regarding a controversial preliminary agreement reached last month between Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras and Archbishop Ieronymos on the separation of church and state.

Leading Greek officials confirmed at the 20th annual Capital Link Forum in New York on Monday that Greece is well on its way to recovery and vowed that the country will stick to its reform pledges and become a preferred investment destination.

European Commission mission chief Declan Costello has urged the Greek government to push ahead with planned privatizations and structural reforms, saying the aim should be to achieve sustainable economic recovery.