Former PM ousted from Greek ruling party

ATHENS

The Greek government has announced it expelled former Prime Minister Antonis Samaras from the New Democracy ruling party after he criticized the government for being too conciliatory with Türkiye.

Samaras had called on Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis to oust the country's foreign minister for allegedly giving in to Turkish demands in ongoing talks between the countries dubbed "calm waters.”

Samaras, a hardline conservative who served as prime minister from 2012 to 2015, has in recent months openly criticized the government for being too soft with Türkiye as well as for pursuing a so-called woke agenda in domestic social matters.

"The permanent appeasement of Turkish challenges is not a centrist policy. In this case, those who declare that in the name of 'friendship and tranquility' with Türkiye they don't mind 'being labelled an appeaser' must be sent home," Samaras said in an interview with To Vima newspaper.

Greek government spokesman Pavlos Marinakis said in a statement that Samaras "in his last interview, expressed his total disagreement with the whole of the current government policy.”

“Moreover, in an unchivalrous and provocative manner, he adopted extreme lies, distorting statements by the Foreign Minister which have been repeatedly and comprehensively clarified."

The statement said that with his comments, Samaras has "placed himself" out of the New Democracy party.

"No one has the right to gamble with the stability of the country in these troubled times", it said.

Samaras had already been expelled from the party in 1993, when as foreign minister he took a hardline stance in a dispute with North Macedonia over the name of Greece's northern neighbor.