Politics of Greece

A particularly warm meeting between Prime Minister Antonis Samaras and European Commission President in-waiting Jean-Claude Juncker in Athens on Monday appeared to result in the two men coming to an understanding about what position Greece’s representative at the European Union executive will hold when the commissioners’ portfolios are handed out next month.

The portfolio that Greece’s Commissioner might get next month is one of the key subjects on the agenda for European Commission president-elect Jean-Claude Juncker’s visit to Athens on Monday.

Juncker is due to meet Prime Minister Antonis Samaras at noon on Monday. The two men, who maintain a close relationship, are expected to hold a joint news conference after their talks.

European Commission President-elect Jean-Claude Juncker is due in Athens on Monday for talks with government officials and to deliver a message of “hope” two months before he takes up his new position in Brussels.

Parliament is expected to begin on Thursday poring over the details of the extensive omnibus bill submitted to the House on Tuesday, although the government is continuing to make last minute changes to the draft legislation.

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.

The next meeting between government officials and the troika will take place in Paris, not Athens, following a request from the Greek side, Kathimerini has learned.

By Angelos Stangos

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.

New Democracy has begun firing staff from its party headquarters on Syngrou Avenue in Athens as it tries to rein in its spending.

Kathimerini understands that 10 members of staff lost their jobs last week and that another 50 to 60 may leave in the coming months. Some will be offered voluntary redundancy, while others will be fired.

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.