A long-time “aversion” in Greece to the possible use of nuclear energy was further rolled back on Wednesday with Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis directly broaching the prospect.

Mitsotakis spoke at a conference organized on Wednesday in Athens and focusing on the issue of energy transition.

“Greece can become a country with nuclear energy,” Mitsotakis said during a discussion with Financial Times’ climate editor, Emiliya Mychasuk.

Mitsotakis said he can’t imagine reaching climate neutrality without employing nuclear power, adding that he wants the country to participate in discussions on nuclear technology. The Greek PM reiterated his call for a “strategic wager” by the country and Europe to attract investments in the sector, a prospect he added isn’t something that’s achieve overnight.

At the same time, he cited the prospect of even examining nuclear power for ocean-going vessels over the coming 10 to 15 years, given that Greece retains one of world’s largest commercial fleets.

Referring to the EU’s “green deal”, he said adaptations must be implemented vis-à-vis regulatory restrictions “in order not to put European businesses at a disadvantage…I believe we are moving at the right level, I want for us to be ambitious, but also realists.”

Turning to the worrying situation in the Middle East, he first expressed concern over the escalation conflict between Israel and Iran, while emphasizing two points, namely, that the latter must not acquire a nuclear arsenal and that a resolution must come through diplomacy.