Μake us preferred on Google US Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s visit to Athens on Oct. 6-7 and the general outlines of his itinerary are now more or less confirmed, with the sixth Greece-US Strategic Dialogue scheduled for Wednesday and defense, energy and regional security expected to dominate the agenda.
Rubio is due to arrive in Athens on the evening of Tuesday, Oct. 6, and depart on the morning of Thursday after meeting Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis. He is expected to hold talks with Foreign Minister George Gerapetritis and other senior Greek officials during his stay. The final details of the program remain subject to last-minute adjustments.
The visit comes as Athens and Washington are deepening a strategic relationship that has expanded well beyond traditional defense cooperation. The sixth round of the Strategic Dialogue, which began in 2018, is expected to cover defense and security, trade and investment, energy and the environment, counterterrorism, civil protection and regional cooperation.
Defense is expected to feature prominently, including the wider framework of US-Greek military cooperation and the Mutual Defense Cooperation Agreement (MDCA). The upgraded agreement signed in 2021 remains in force on an open-ended basis unless either side gives written notice of termination.
Energy is likely to be another major focus as Washington increasingly views Greece as an energy-security hub for southeastern Europe and the eastern Mediterranean, while Athens is promoting infrastructure that can strengthen regional energy connectivity and diversify supplies.
The agenda is expected to include the Great Sea Interconnector (GSI), the planned undersea electricity link connecting Greece, Cyprus and Israel. The project has recently moved back toward implementation following the entry of French investment group Meridiam as a majority shareholder in the project company and renewed preparations for seabed surveys.
The wider regional environment will also shape the talks.
Greece is likely to raise its concerns over Turkey’s increasingly assertive positions in the eastern Mediterranean, including Ankara’s claims regarding maritime jurisdiction and its opposition to projects such as the GSI. Washington, meanwhile, continues to favor the settlement of outstanding maritime boundaries in the region in accordance with international law.
The talks are also expected to touch on the “3+1” framework linking Greece, Cyprus, Israel and the United States, including possible new areas of cooperation such as innovation. The regional security picture — from the eastern Mediterranean to the Middle East — will form part of the wider discussion, alongside the war in Ukraine.
Rubio’s visit follows months of high-level contacts between Washington and Athens. In August, Rubio and Gerapetritis discussed preparations for the sixth Strategic Dialogue as well as developments in the Middle East, Iran and Ukraine. A subsequent visit to Athens by US Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Allison Hooker in September helped prepare the ground for the secretary of state’s trip.
