Kyriakos Mitsotakis is seeking to draw clear lines ahead of the forthcoming election, and in yesterday’s radio interview (on Skai) he made clear that he has no intention of abandoning his core policy choices.
With pointed criticism of those who attack his handling of national issues, a defence of the party’s broadening in both directions and a clear message to New Democracy ministers and party figures, the prime minister set out the strategy he will pursue until the polls, explained why he remains committed to winning a single-party majority and acknowledged that the election result will determine what comes next for him personally, too.
Responding to criticism of his handling of Greek-Turkish relations, Mr Mitsotakis accused the government’s critics of sometimes appearing to hope “things go wrong on national issues”, whether they come from the left or the right.
Without naming Antonis Samaras, he defended the Athens Declaration, arguing that it has established a stable framework for communication with Turkey that is useful in the event of a crisis. On the Greece-Cyprus electricity interconnection cable, he made clear that the project can and must go ahead “without making any concessions whatsoever on our sovereign rights”.
On the question of broadening New Democracy, prompted by the approach to figures from Simitis-era PASOK, Kyriakos Mitsotakis invoked the legacy of the party’s founder, Constantine Karamanlis.
“If we want to be a broad-based party, we must move beyond the labels of the centre, the right and the left, as he wrote in our founding declaration,” he said, effectively rejecting criticism — primarily from Mr Samaras — that reaching out politically dilutes the party’s identity.
He also offered an indirect response to Kostas Karamanlis’s calls for a more nuanced and multidimensional foreign policy, with greater emphasis on relations with China. Greece, he argued, maintains good relations with Beijing while also following European policy on the competition posed by Chinese production.
On the issue of the public debt, by contrast, he avoided directly addressing responsibility for the 2004-09 period, choosing instead to focus on its reduction today, which he described as one of the government’s greatest economic policy achievements.
“Mid-course”
The prime minister emphatically rejected the prospect of a change of prime minister “mid-course”. His comments on the possibility of a challenge to his leadership if New Democracy is limited to 25% in the election were also notable.
“If I got 25% in an election, they would be right to say those things, to be clear,” he replied, acknowledging that electoral performance is a decisive factor in the party’s leadership. He also recalled that New Democracy has a tradition of rewarding leaders who achieve good results, but of looking for new solutions when they fail to do so.
The 25% mark is the threshold at and above which the leading party receives additional seats (a bonus). Below that percentage, the system automatically switches to simple proportional representation, with no additional seats for the leading party.
Read politically, the prime minister’s remark indicates that he recognises a significant electoral setback would inevitably raise the question of a challenge to his leadership.
Asked about the absence of Kostas Karamanlis and Antonis Samaras from an event marking New Democracy’s 52nd anniversary, Mr Mitsotakis avoided escalating the confrontation. As for Vangelis Meimarakis, he said that Meimarakis had told him he would be absent because of an important commitment in Brussels. He added pointedly, however, that “the battle is always fought by those who are present”.
The prime minister ruled out a reshuffle and also sent ministers a clear message to keep working, avoiding an early shift into campaign mode and “downing tools”. He also made clear that “I am the first to send the message that no arrogant behaviour can be tolerated”.
For a third term, he set accelerating investment as a priority, along with achieving a growth rate twice the European average and completing reforms to the justice system and spatial planning. He also highlighted the challenges posed by artificial intelligence, the climate crisis and geopolitical shifts.
The central political goal, he said, remains a single-party majority, which he directly linked to stability and attracting investment. “A single-party majority allows you to make quick decisions and, of course, ensures accountability,” he argued, expressing reservations about coalition governments.
The challenge for the coming period, as the prime minister’s office sees it, is for New Democracy to stem defections and rally its electoral base, seeking the highest possible share of the vote as it looks ahead to what comes next. It is a tough challenge, but the prime minister believes it can be won.