source – newsbreak.gr
The Greek Government is his ally
The European Public Prosecutor’s Office yesterday uncovered a well-organized import fraud network that had been operating for years, seizing 2,435 containers of Chinese products at the port of Piraeus.
This is the largest operation of its kind in the history of the EU. The seized goods, electric bicycles, roller skates, shoes and fabrics, were being trafficked with the aim of avoiding customs duties and VAT, damaging European public coffers.
The timing is not just coincidental. According to a Reuters report , the Trump administration in the US has launched the largest naval strategy in decades with the aim of limiting the global network of ports controlled by China . Piraeus is explicitly mentioned as a “point of interest” for Washington, as COSCO – a state-owned Chinese giant – owns 67% of Piraeus. Piraeus is a hub for trade connecting Europe, Africa and Asia, which makes it of strategic importance for any great power.
The US concern is not only economic but also geopolitical. As a security expert pointed out to Reuters, China could exploit port control for military purposes, for espionage or to cause disruption in supply chains in the event of a crisis. The Pentagon has already included COSCO on a “blacklist” of companies with ties to the Chinese military.
The government aims to remove COSCO from Piraeus
In Greece, yesterday’s development also takes on a political dimension. Sources comment that the government may use the scandal to increase pressure on COSCO, with the aim of reducing the Chinese presence in Piraeus or even seeking alternative management schemes with European or American support. The fact that the European Public Prosecutor’s Office has taken over the case also gives Brussels “legitimacy” to demand greater control over Chinese cargo moving through Piraeus.
All of this shows that Piraeus is once again at the center of a global confrontation. For China, it is a crucial link in the “New Silk Road.” For the US and Europe, it is a strategic gateway that they cannot leave in Chinese hands without conditions.
The Chinese -COSCO- advanced their commercial interest in Piraeus the last ten years during the financial
downturn in Greece. It was then, an opportunity for the world’s largest Greek Shipping Companies, to invest
in the Greek Economy to secure Greek National Interests. Since the USA is concerned of the Chinese Presence in Greece as an attempt to deter their geo-political power in Greece, why is it not concerned with Turkish Threats
in the Aegean Sea?? Nor is it not concerned, with the invasion of Turkey by US Arms and its illegal Occupancy since 1974?? Mr. Trump
please remove the Turkish Military from Northern Cyprus, consequently,to pacify the Eastern Mediterranean Sea, thereby
the Greek Nation can have some guarantees in behalf of their National Sovereignty prior to modifying the Chinese/ Port of Piraeus Commercial Agreements.
Since The Military Industrial Complex, a USA Component is actively Funding wars in Ukraine and Gaza it would be exemplary to reduce tensions in the Mediterranean Sea by reviewing its foreign policy. Due to neglect, it is high time, for Turkey and the USA to become signatories of the Conventions /Treaty of International Law of the Seas as China and Greece have endorsed, to be aligned with almost all nations of the world.