Mitsotakis Marks Kastellorizo Liberation, Unveils Development Plan

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis visited Kastellorizo on Sunday for the 83rd anniversary of the island's liberation, the final stop of a three-day tour of Greece's easternmost islands. On Saturday, he visited the islets of Strongyli and Ro, meeting military personnel at their outposts and paying tribute to Despina Achladioti, the "Lady of Ro" who raised the Greek flag daily for 40 years.

At a meeting with Mayor Nikolaos Asvestas and the regional governor, Mitsotakis pledged to resolve decades-old infrastructure gaps within the next four-year term. Projects include port restoration, a permanent solution for wastewater treatment and water supply, zero-waste management, photovoltaic installations for energy autonomy, and renovated housing for doctors, teachers, and other public servants willing to relocate. The Hellenic Parliament will fund restoration of several buildings so doctors can be housed by summer 2027.

“We do not threaten anyone, but we do not accept threats or diktats from anyone.”

The government announced a 5,000 euro annual salary supplement for civil servants, police, and armed forces personnel serving on Megisti, plus a 5,000 euro yearly household allowance increased by 1,000 euro per minor child. An additional subsidized coastal ferry route will run weekly. The measures are part of a broader 2.2 billion euro package unveiled at the Thessaloniki International Fair.

In a pointed message to Ankara, Mitsotakis declared: "We do not threaten anyone, but we do not accept threats or diktats from anyone." He recalled that in 2010 then-PM George Papandreou used Kastellorizo as the backdrop to announce Greece's entry into the memorandum era — a linkage he said "did not honor the island." The premier framed dialogue with Turkey as "a choice of self-confidence and faith in international law," stressing that Kastellorizo's soil is also European soil.

Mitsotakis also highlighted education reforms: 240 schools renovated in the second phase of the "Marietta Giannakou" program, bringing the two-year total to roughly 670 schools, and 5,259 permanent teacher appointments. A pilot program for free electronic state language certificates for 9th-grade students will launch in late 2026.