ND says KAS ruling on Piraeus port is ‘outrageous’
The main opposition on Wednesday decried a ruling by Greece's Central Archaeological Council (KAS) which limited the area on which China's Cosco can invest in Piraeus as “outrageous,” and attributed it to ruling SYRIZA's “ideological obsessions.”
“KAS made the outrageous assertion that almost half of Piraeus is an archaeological site. KAS, however, is appointed by the government and therefore the government is accountable for its ruling that undermine building activity in the country's biggest port,” party spokesperson Sofia Zaharaki said.
“New Democracy will ensure the implementation of investments that will change the image of the country and create thousands of new jobs,” she added.
Rejecting the criticism, the ministry of culture said KAS's decision “will not affect …the investment in the port,” pointing to the center of Athens where construction has not stopped although it is also of archaeological interest.
Following a marathon session that concluded around midnight on Tuesday, KAS voted unanimously against plans by the Chinese multinational to construct a mall next to a new cruise ship terminal and also called for restrictions on a five-star hotel set to be built in the Porto Leone area, in the southern section of the port where the cruise terminal is located.
