Pillar 08

Greece as a European Sovereign

Greece is a small country in a complicated neighbourhood. It cannot afford grand illusions about its power or naive illusions about its safety. What it can afford, and what AURIO demands, is a foreign policy built on three foundations: European sovereignty over American dependency, international law over military posturing, and principled consistency over transactional silence. Greece does not exist to serve the strategic interests of larger powers. It exists to serve its own people.

Inspired by International Law

€7bn Defence budget 2026 (rising)
€30bn Arms spending to 2036
€3.5bn Military deal with Israel while Gaza burns

The Proposal

01

Pursue maritime rights through legal and diplomatic mechanisms

Including the International Court of Justice and EU frameworks. No concessions on Greek sovereign territory. Firm, consistent and through every available legal channel.

02

Engage Turkey in the language of business

Economic cooperation and mutual interest wherever that engagement serves Greek citizens. Economic interdependence reduces the risk of military conflict. That is not naivety. That is strategy.

03

Push for European solutions to European security questions

The EU's emerging strategic autonomy agenda is the right direction. A Europe that can defend itself without depending on the decisions of any single government in Washington is a more secure Europe for Greece.

04

Strategic recognition for Evros

Greece hosts a facility that supplies nine countries with energy. That strategic contribution deserves EU investment, infrastructure development and formal community benefit obligations for the host region.

05

Recognise the State of Palestine

Support a two state solution based on internationally recognised borders. Call for an immediate and permanent ceasefire and for full humanitarian access to Gaza. Support the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court.

06

Suspend all military collaboration with Israel

For as long as the conflict in Gaza continues without a negotiated resolution. No new arms contracts. No joint military exercises. This is the position Spain has taken. You cannot demand respect for international law in the Aegean while ignoring it in Gaza.

07

Oppose the EU-Mercosur deal

EU trade policy must not sacrifice the livelihoods of European farmers to serve the export interests of European corporations. Greek rice (240,000 tons annually) and honey (25,000 tons) face direct competition from imports produced under lower standards.

08

Support Ukraine's right to defend its territory

Russia's invasion is a violation of international law. AURIO supports the EU sanctions regime and a negotiated diplomatic resolution as the only realistic path to ending the war.

09

Demand full EU funding for border management in Evros

Push for a genuine European migration and asylum system that distributes both costs and responsibilities across member states. Migration policy conducted in full compliance with human rights law.

You cannot demand respect for international law in the Aegean while ignoring it in Gaza.

Where the Money Comes From

€7bn

Defence budget

In 2026 (2.6% of GDP, rising). €30 billion budgeted for arms procurement to 2036. AURIO supports EU strategic autonomy, which over time reduces the national defence burden.

EU-Mercosur opposition

Protecting Greek agricultural revenue. Greek rice and honey are directly threatened. Opposition to the deal is not a cost. It is revenue protection.

€1.6bn

Migration and border funds

From AMIF and BMVI (2021-2027). AURIO demands this funding serves community development in Evros, not only security infrastructure.

The Spain position on Gaza

Suspending military collaboration with Israel has no net budget cost. The €3.5 billion defence agreement is an expenditure, not revenue. Redirecting arms procurement toward European defence industry supports EU strategic autonomy.

What Changes for You

Greece is a small country in a complicated neighbourhood. It cannot afford grand illusions about its power or naive illusions about its safety. What it can afford, and what AURIO demands, is a foreign policy built on three foundations: European sovereignty over American dependency, international law over military posturing, and principled consistency over transactional silence. Greece does not exist to serve the strategic interests of larger powers. It exists to serve its own people.

1

Foreign policy positions are budget positions. Where Greece spends on defence, how it votes on trade deals, and which military partnerships it maintains all have direct fiscal consequences.

2

EU defence integration saves money over time by reducing duplicated national defence spending.

3

Mercosur opposition protects Greek farmers' revenue. Greek rice and honey production remain viable.

4

Community benefit from border infrastructure means Evros sees returns from hosting strategic assets.

Detailed Targets

Measurable outcomes and commitments within three years.

Read more
  • Community benefit framework for LNG terminal introduced within one electoral term
  • Military collaboration with Israel suspended pending Gaza resolution
  • Mercosur deal opposed in all EU forums
  • Full EU migration funding claimed for Evros community development
  • European strategic autonomy agenda actively supported in all EU councils

The Evidence and Research

Full research, case studies, and references behind this policy.

Read more

On Turkey: The Full Position

Decades of tension have not resolved the maritime boundary disputes, have not stopped Turkish overflights of Greek airspace and have not produced security for Greek citizens in border regions. What they have produced is an arms race that Greece can ill afford and a relationship permanently on the edge of miscalculation. Armed Turkish F-16s entered Greek national airspace in October 2025 and the Athens Flight Information Region in September 2025.

AURIO will pursue Greece’s maritime rights and territorial sovereignty firmly, consistently and through every available legal and diplomatic mechanism, including the International Court of Justice and EU frameworks. We will not make concessions on Greek sovereign territory.

But we will engage Turkey in the language of business, economic cooperation and mutual interest wherever that engagement serves Greek citizens. Economic interdependence reduces the risk of military conflict. A Turkish investor in northern Greece and a Greek exporter to Istanbul both have an interest in stability.

On NATO and European Security: The Full Position

Greece provides NATO with one of its most strategically significant positions in the Eastern Mediterranean. It bears costs in migration pressure, military spending and the strategic burdens of frontier status that are disproportionate to the benefits it receives in return.

Greece is a NATO member and will remain one. AURIO will not walk away from these commitments. But AURIO will push relentlessly for European solutions to European security questions. The EU’s emerging strategic autonomy agenda is the right direction.

On the Alexandroupolis LNG terminal: Greece hosts a facility that supplies nine countries with energy. That strategic contribution deserves strategic recognition in the form of EU investment, infrastructure development and formal community benefit obligations for the host region.

On Israel and Gaza: The Full Position

The Greek government has remained largely silent on Gaza while expanding military cooperation with Israel. Greece and Israel have strengthened ties through formal agreements, joint military exercises and a defence agreement estimated at 3.5 billion dollars.

AURIO takes this position without equivocation. We recognise the State of Palestine. We support a two state solution based on internationally recognised borders. We call for an immediate and permanent ceasefire and for full humanitarian access to Gaza. We support the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court and expect all states to comply with its decisions.

AURIO will suspend all military collaboration with Israel for as long as the conflict in Gaza continues without a negotiated resolution that protects Palestinian civilian life and establishes a credible political pathway to Palestinian statehood. No new arms contracts. No joint military exercises. No participation in trilateral military frameworks that include Israel as a partner.

This is the position that Spain has taken, implementing a total arms embargo through the Arms Trade Treaty. It is the position that Ireland, Norway, Slovenia and a growing number of EU member states have taken. It is rooted in a consistent application of the same international legal principles that Greece invokes when defending its own sovereignty against Turkish revisionism.

Greece’s strategic relationship with Israel on energy, diplomatic dialogue and non military matters can continue. We are not calling for rupture. We are calling for consistency.

On the EU-Mercosur Deal

The EU-Mercosur trade agreement sacrifices European agriculture to serve European industrial exports. Germany’s automotive industry gains tariff free access to Latin American markets. In exchange, European farmers absorb 99,000 tonnes of South American beef, 60,000 tonnes of duty-free rice and increased imports of sugar, poultry and honey produced under lower environmental and labour standards.

Greece is directly affected. Greek rice production (240,000 tons annually, third largest in the EU) and honey production (25,000 tons, 10% of EU output) face direct competition from imports that undercut them on price because they are produced under regulations that would be illegal in Europe. This is not free trade. It is regulatory arbitrage dressed as diplomacy.

The Greek government voted in favour of the deal. Greek farmers blocked the Athens-Thessaloniki motorway on January 8, 2026. The European Parliament froze the deal on January 21, 2026 and referred it to the Court of Justice.

AURIO opposes the EU-Mercosur deal. Principled consistency means applying the same standards to trade that we apply to domestic production.

On Ukraine and Russia

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is a violation of international law and the principles of national sovereignty that Greece depends on for its own security. AURIO supports Ukraine’s right to defend its territory and the EU sanctions regime against Russia.

We also support a negotiated diplomatic resolution as the only realistic path to ending the war. Military escalation without a political horizon serves no one. Greece, with its own experience of great power manipulation, has a particular interest in ensuring that any resolution respects Ukrainian sovereignty.

On Migration

The migration situation at Evros is a European border management problem being handled at Greek expense. The EU’s rhetoric on burden sharing has consistently outpaced its financial and operational reality.

AURIO will demand full EU funding for border management in Evros. We will push for a genuine European migration and asylum system that distributes both costs and responsibilities across member states. Migration policy in Evros will be conducted in full compliance with European and international human rights law. That standard is not optional and Greece’s reputation in Europe depends on it.

The Single Sentence

Greece is a European sovereign state. It will act like one.

This policy needs people.

Not promises. Not consultants. People who show up.

Join the Movement