Greece and Romania have discussed opportunities to further
expand economic cooperation, including in energy, transport
connectivity, trade and investment.
According to Greece’s Kathimerini newspaper, these issues were
at the center of a meeting in Bucharest between Greek Minister of
Economy and Finance and Eurogroup President Kyriakos Pierrakakis
and Romanian President Nicușor Dan.
Greece and Romania occupy important positions on the energy and
transport map of Southeast Europe. Expanding cooperation between
the two countries is particularly significant for diversifying
energy and freight flows along the north-south axis in the
Balkans.
In recent years, Greece has been expanding its infrastructure
with the aim of becoming a regional gas supply hub. The country’s
LNG terminals, the Trans Adriatic Pipeline, the Greece-Bulgaria
Interconnector and other connections enable alternative gas
supplies to reach Southeast European markets.
Romania, meanwhile, plays an important role in regional energy
security due to its energy resources in the Black Sea, electricity
generation capacity and geographic proximity to Central European
markets. Strengthening energy links between Athens and Bucharest
could therefore contribute to the development of a more integrated
regional market in the Balkans.
Transport cooperation was also an important focus of the
meeting. The development of routes linking Greek ports in the
Aegean Sea with the Black Sea and Central Europe via Bulgaria and
Romania is increasing the importance of alternative logistics
corridors in the region.
In this regard, such projects are also relevant to the European
segment of the East-West and Middle Corridor transport systems, in
which Azerbaijan is involved. Closer integration of transport and
energy infrastructure across the Black Sea basin and the Balkans
could create additional opportunities to diversify the flow of
goods and energy from the Caspian region to Europe.
