Voluntary isolation?
Two parameters determine a country’s position on the international stage: the significance of its role on this stage and its ability to defend its integrity. Unfortunately, Greece’s profile in both these areas is a cause for serious concern. The main developments in Greece’s defense sector can be listed thus: the fact that military units in Evros and on the islands are seriously understaffed; the change in the national defense dogma with an insistence on opening large new bases on the northern borders; an exceptionally problematic command structure in the armed forces; the withdrawal of Greek aircraft in the Aegean, and so on. But Greece’s profile on the international stage is probably even worse than this. As we saw with the recognition of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia as «Macedonia» by the USA, Greece’s opinion on regional matters is not important to America. Essentially, Greece has no idea what Washington thinks nor how it is likely to act and is thus unable to influence regional initiatives. There also appears to be a voluntary isolation of our country from its European partners. We no longer have high-level diplomatic exchanges with London, Paris, Berlin and Rome… Many do not regard these capitals as important due to US supremacy but many play a decisive role in the EU and NATO, from whose workings our country is currently entirely absent…
