The European Commission’s key strategies regarding the maritime industry were presented by the European Commissioner for Sustainable Transport and Tourism, Apostolos Tzitzikostas, during an official visit to the offices of the Hellenic Chamber of Shipping.
The central point of the discussion was the maintenance of the competitiveness of European shipping and the harmonization of development strategies with the international regulations of the IMO. Particular emphasis was placed on other issues such as planning for the shipbuilding industry, coastal shipping, yachting, port infrastructure (including marinas), the green transition, as well as the need to inform and empower the new generation for the shipping sector.
The President of the Chamber, George Alexandratos, warmly thanked the Commissioner and his staff for the substantive and honest discussion, emphasizing that “it is the duty of everyone – political leadership and institutional bodies – to defend the achievements with documented and understandable arguments.”
In this context, it was underlined that “neither we nor the EU member states should forget that a key component of competitiveness is the maintenance of small and medium-sized shipping enterprises, which in Greece constitute over 50% of the total.”
