Companies related to Russia are competing with companies from the United States for control of the port.
As the daily writes, the port, located near the border with Turkey and until recently, of insignificant importance, has gained importance in the face of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, becoming one of the main equipment transport points for the growing contingent of US troops on NATO’s eastern flank. Over the last year, the amount of equipment unloaded there was to increase 14 times.
The port is now to be the subject of competition between four companies applying for its takeover as part of privatization. Two of them have ties to Russia and two are from the US. It is about the companies of the Greek-Russian oligarch having ties with Vladimir Putin Ivan Sawidisa former deputy to the Russian State Duma and the company Dimitrios Kopeluzos, the local partner of Gazprom. He is also trying to control the port, among others American fund BlackSummit Financial Groupthat was to be encouraged by the US ambassador to compete with Chinese and Russian influence in the region.
Activity in Alexandroupolis is opposed by Turkey
As the newspaper notes, although increased US military activity in Greece is a subject of anxiety to neighboring Turkey, which has tense relations with Greece. According to Athens, Turkish fighters breached Alexandropolis airspace in May, and in June, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan complained about American installations in the country, claiming that he was “not buying” US explanations that they were directed against Russia, not Turkey.