Southeastern European countries

Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu and Cypriot President Nicos Anastasides on Thursday agreed to speed up plans for an ambitious Mediterranean undersea natural gas pipeline project and to seek to boost trilateral cooperation and stability in the region.

“Greece is gradually emerging from an extended crisis with the aid of countries, which in collaboration with Greece, look forward to stability and security in the wider region, as well as common steps of progress”, Greek PM Alexis Tsipras said in a statement after the Greece-Cyprus-Israel Trilateral Summit in Thessaloniki on Thursday. Mr.

A large number of hotel units at Greek destinations that are particularly popular with foreign visitors have stopped taking bookings for peak summer season earlier than ever before, having already reached their full capacity for August bookings.

Every visit to Cyprus is like a punch to the gut to me, because it reminds me of what Greece could be like if it was free of its hang-ups.

In a speech to the Hellenic Army's regiment in Kosovo on Tuesday, Defense Minister Panos Kammenos sought to underline the growing significance of Greece's role in the Balkans. He also took an apparent dig at Turkey, which has ratcheted up its aggressive rhetoric in recent weeks.

At least one sector in the Greek economy has improved its performance over the last 12 months, as Greece climbed seven spots in the World Economic Forum's Tourism Competitiveness Index for 2017.

German Foreign Minister and Vice Chancellor Sigmar Gabriel looks on during a news conference with his Greek counterpart Nikos Kotzias following their meeting at the ministry in Athens Thursday. Kotzias's talks with Gabriel focused on Turkey's increasingly provocative stance, United Nations-buffered Cyprus talks and Europe's refugee crisis.

The Greek chapter of Cyprus's ruling Democratic Rally (DISY) party and Greek conservative party New Democracy will hold a public event in Athens on Thursday on economic developments in Cyprus and Greece, titled "Good Practices in Cyprus and the Exit from the Bailout Mechanism."

Greek Cyprus saw its best ever receipts from tourism in 2016, data showed on March 1, in a record year for the Mediterranean holiday island considered a regional safe haven.

Tourism income last year reached 2.36 billion euros ($2.48 billion) compared to 2.11 billion in 2015, an 11.9 percent increase, according to official data.