End of a Love Story Between Greece and Russia?
In early July, Greece and Macedonia found an agreement on their dispute. As a result of the negotiations, Macedonia will hold a referendum on September 30 bearing on the country’s name. It is likely to pave the way to entering NATO, and to move a bit further from Russian influence.
In the meantime, four Russian diplomats were banned from Greece, accused of supporting opposition movements to the agreement. In response to this, on Monday, Russia expelled Greek diplomats.
Russia and Greece were traditionally friendly countries. Russia supported the Greek independence from Ottomans in the 19th century, and after Tsipras was elected, relations between both countries had been close and cordial.
Russia has strongly opposed NATO expansion to countries that were under its influence: among them, Ukraine, Macedonia, and Georgia.
By Antoine Dewaest
Photo: Thema Newsroom