# Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Greek Foreign Minister Giorgos Gerapetritis at the Opening Session of the United States-Greece Strategic Dialogue

Date: 7 Oct 2026
Released by: Marco Rubio, Secretary of State

## MediaRelease.co Summary

Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Greek Foreign Minister Giorgos Gerapetritis opened the sixth round of the U.S.-Greece Strategic Dialogue in Athens, on Rubio’s first visit to Greece. Gerapetritis cited three agreements signed that day and cooperation on defense, energy, shipping and digital infrastructure, including the port of Alexandroupolis. Rubio called Greece an indispensable NATO ally, noted its entry into the National Guard State Partnership Program with Florida, and highlighted the Vertical Gas Corridor and U.S. LNG exports.

## Original release

FOREIGN MINISTER GERAPETRITIS: Dear Secretary, dear colleagues, it is a great pleasure to welcome and your delegation to Athens for the sixth round of the Greece-U.S. Strategic Dialogue. Your presence here speaks to the enduring strength of our relationship and to the importance both our countries attach to its future. Since the launch of the Strategic Dialogue back in 2018, our cooperation has grown steadily in scope and ambition, encompassing defense, energy, infrastructure, digital technologies, law enforcement, maritime affairs, and the close ties between our peoples. The three agreements signed today are tangible evidence of that progress. Our partnership has never been stronger, deeper, or more consequential. It rests on shared values and a common determination to advance peace, stability, security, and prosperity for our peoples, for our regions, and beyond. We meet at a time of profound geopolitical change. The ongoing war in Ukraine, instability in the Middle East, threats to maritime security in the Red Sea, and the resurgence of a revisionist rhetoric demand resolve, coordination, and a clear sense of purpose. In this uncertain environment, Greece remains a reliable ally and an anchor of stability in the Eastern Mediterranean. During the 2025-‘26 term on the United Nations – of the Security Council – and as we prepare to assume the presidency of the Council of the European Union second semester of 2027 – we bring that same sense of responsibility to our work. Respect for international law is a guiding principle for our foreign policy and an essential condition for lasting peace. Greece’s geography places us at the meeting point of three continents. Our history, our longstanding relationships across the region, and the enduring influence of Hellenism allow us to engage with a wide range of partners in good faith and with credibility. This gives Greece a particular responsibility and a practical capacity to connect countries, facilitate dialogue, and build understanding. It also gives our partnership strategic value. Strengthening Greece’s role strengthens the security of the wider region and advances interests we share with the United States. The Strategic Dialogue allow us to translate this convergence into concrete action. Today, we have an opportunity to carry that world forward across its core pillars. Our defense cooperation has reached unprecedented levels. The Mutual Defense Cooperation Agreement has deepened our strategic partnership and strengthened our capacity to address common security challenges. Alexandroupolis exemplifies the value of this cooperation. A sovereign Greek port and a vital logistical hub for the United States, it contributes directly to the security of nations – of NATO’s eastern flank. Greece’s consistently high defense expenditure and longstanding contribution to the Alliance reflect a simple conviction: Collective security requires every Ally to shoulder its responsibilities. We are committed to further strengthening our defense cooperation, including through procurement, industrial partnerships, and advanced technologies. Our growing collaboration in law enforcement and counterterrorism is equally important to the security of our citizens. On energy, Greece is emerging as a vital hub for Southeastern and Central Europe infrastructure, such as the Alexandroupolis FSRU. Together with our leading role in the Vertical Corridor, this diversifying supply is strengthening resilience and giving our neighbors greater energy security. The growing engagement of U.S. energy companies, including Severn and ExxonMobil, underscores confidence, increases potential, (inaudible) the opportunities our partnership offers. Our maritime strength are the third strategic dimension. With Greek-owned vessels accounting for almost one-fourth of global energy shipping capacity globally, Greek shipping plays a pivotal role in connecting energy producers with consumers and sustaining transatlantic energy flows. The transformation of the Greek economy has opened a new chapter in our bilateral relationship. Renewed growth and investment confidence are creating opportunities for American businesses to participate in Greece’s progress. Investment by leading U.S. technology companies in data centers’ digital infrastructure is helping to establish Greece as a regional center for innovation. Our ambition is to build on this momentum through partnerships that create skilled jobs, support research, and bring new opportunities to the next generation. At the heart of this relationship, however, are our people. The Greek American community has helped shape America while sustaining a close and abiding connection with Greece. Its achievements in business, science, public service, and the arts are a source of pride for both our nations. Greek Americans have made Greece’s heritage part of America’s success. They embody a relationship rooted in the ideals of liberty, democracy, and the rule of law, ideals that inspired America’s Founding Fathers and continue to give our partnership purpose. Our expanding education and cultural exchanges carry this connection forward, allowing young Greeks and Americans to learn from one another and to build relationships of their own. Mr. Secretary, I look forward to our discussions today and to the practical results that we deliver. We have a strong foundation and a clear sense of what we can achieve. Today’s discussion will help us turn that shared ambition into practical results. Our alliance draws strength – draws strength from all we have achieved together. Its promise lies in what we choose to do next. Thank you. SECRETARY RUBIO: Well, thank you. Thank you for this opportunity to be here today for the sixth time a U.S. secretary of state gathers with their counterparts in Greece for this Strategic Dialogue. And I’m happy to be here in Greece for that dialogue. It’s my first trip to the country ever; I didn’t even have a chance to come as a senator. And so I’m happy to be here and to be a part of this Strategic Dialogue. I want to begin by saying that I hope our presence here today and our work that we’re about to do – and continue to do together – highlights something very important, and that is how critical the historic alliance between Greece and the United States is. And this is especially true now at a time of great global uncertainty, whether it’s the war between Russia and Ukraine, whether it’s what’s happening in the Middle East, whether it’s – meaning in the Straits of Hormuz and, increasingly now, in the Red Sea because of the Houthis in Yemen and Saudi Arabia. At a time of extraordinary global tumult and global instability, we need anchor partners rooted in a common history. And that is what Greece has meant for the United States and, I hope, what the United States has meant for Greece and what we will continue to mean for each other. This strong partnership, it’s a relationship that spans a variety of fronts – obviously defense and security, our mutual defense and security as allies and partners, but it extends to trade, to investment, to energy. There literally is no – it’s a cultural exchange. There are literally no areas of our societies or of our countries that are not part of the U.S.-Greece relationship, and we seek to build and expand on every single one of them. Let me begin by saying what is obvious to everyone but should continue to be obvious: Greece is an indispensable NATO partner, an indispensable NATO Ally. It is a pillar of stability in this region, it is a pillar of the U.S.’s presence in this region, and it is a pillar of how we secure our national interest as well as Greece’s in the region. So we are thrilled – part of that, some of the things that aren’t heavily perceived but we’ll be able to be a part of announcing again later today, is we’re thrilled that Greece joins the U.S. National Guard Bureau of State Sponsorship [1] Program, and they’re doing so with the guard from my home state of Florida. It’s another milestone in our deepening defense relationship. The U.S.-Greece Economic Security Declaration commits both nations to continue to work with likeminded allies as well to develop secure supply chains. That includes – including critical mineral productions, again another area of very strong cooperation in which our mutual interests are aligned but also in which we’re taking concrete action. Our energy relationship is reaching new heights, and it continues to expand and grow, and it’s something we’re going to be building on. The Vertical Gas Corridor expansion has cemented in Greece, has cemented Greece as an energy hub and as a secure energy hub, and has facilitated increase in U.S. LNG exports to Europe. That’s something we continue to build on. Our bilateral relationship as countries, of course, at the end, is founded not just in a common history but in enduring ties of family, of culture, of religion, of a shared heritage. As I’ll speak about later today in what I think is a pretty historic setting, from what I read – (laughter) – it – we are indebted to ancient Greece for its role in shaping not just our country but, frankly, our civilization. And we – so we’re here today to remember the past because that’s the foundation upon which our relationship is built, but also to focus on the future, because we have incredible things that we can do together. And I’m very grateful to be a part of this, to be – excited to be a part of the Strategic Dialogue and happy to be here on my first visit to Greece but hopefully not my last. [1] Partnership

## Key details

- Author/spokesperson: Marco Rubio, Secretary of State
- Published: 7 Oct 2026
- Publisher country: United States
- Subject country/region: National (United States)
- Original source: https://www.state.gov/releases/office-of-the-spokesman/2026/10/secretary-of-state-marco-rubio-and-greek-foreign-minister-giorgos-gerapetritis-at-the-opening-session-of-the-united-states-greece-strategic-dialogue/
- MediaRelease.co URL: https://mediarelease.co/us/mr01348-secretary-of-state-marco-rubio-and-greek-foreign-minister-07102026.html

Original source: https://www.state.gov/releases/office-of-the-spokesman/2026/10/secretary-of-state-marco-rubio-and-greek-foreign-minister-giorgos-gerapetritis-at-the-opening-session-of-the-united-states-greece-strategic-dialogue/
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