Just days before NATO leaders gather in Ankara on July 7 and 8, word is circulating in Athens that a senior American official might swing through the Greek capital first, if only for a few hours.
According to a source familiar with the planning, the visitor would be either Secretary of State Marco Rubio or Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, though nobody in Athens can yet say which. Whoever it turns out to be would presumably be stopping on the way to Turkey for a summit that officials on both sides of the Atlantic are treating as unusually consequential, touching on the future of the alliance and a security landscape that looks increasingly different from the one NATO was built for.
Talks about the possible stop have reportedly been underway in Washington over the past day, though nothing has been locked in. Sources caution that the plan could still change, even at the last minute, and that nothing should be assumed until it happens.
Still, Greek officials are not waiting to find out. Preparations for hosting a senior American visitor are said to already be in motion, with plans in place that could be activated on short notice if word comes through only hours before a plane touches down.
A stopover by a senior American official would be interpreted in Athens as a nod to the significance Greece holds in an increasingly turbulent region when it comes to defense, security and energy. It would also come at a moment when much of the attention is fixed on the U.S.-Turkey relationship, and on what “gifts” President Trump might bring to Ankara that could strengthen Turkey’s defense standing.
Looking past the NATO summit, Greek officials consider it all but certain that the next round of the Strategic Dialogue between Athens and Washington will take place in September, in Athens. It is at that meeting that the Mutual Defense Cooperation Agreement is expected to be renewed.
Source: TA NEA
