Mitsotakis: we are waiting for the vaccine in Greece in the new year

The Pfizer vaccine will be approved on December 30 and is expected to be in Greece within 48 hours, while the vaccination of the population will begin immediately according to the government’s plan, Kyriakos Mitsotakis announced in an interview with Alpha television channel.

As the Prime Minister explained, the vaccine is the only effective weapon currently available to deal with the pandemic and the government’s goal is to vaccinate 70% of the population, while the first of the second dose will be within a month. This means that the vigilance of citizens and the observance of personal protection measures must continue in the coming months. As he said, “it is a miracle of science that we will have the vaccine in a few months,” while reiterating his decision to be one of the first to be vaccinated in public, together with the President of the Republic, Ms. Katerina Sakellaropoulou, with the In order to convince the public that the vaccine is safe and there will be an invitation to other political leaders. In this regard, the Prime Minister highlighted the power of persuasion and example and referred to the government’s decision to launch an information campaign for the general mobilization of society. Regarding the vaccination process, the prime minister spoke of a huge operation.

Regarding the new restrictive measures announced by Stelios Petsas at noon, Kyriakos Mitsotakis explained that they were taken because the cases did not decrease as much as expected by the government and one of the reasons – according to the Prime Minister – was that they were not followed as strictly as in the first confinement. When asked about the opening of retail, Mitsotakis said there will be announcements at the end of the week, while announcing that nightly entertainment may not work until the pandemic is effectively resolved, as traces that have been made , the data showed. That late-night entertainment was a major factor in the spread of the coronavirus. Even until Easter it is possible to do without this branch in operation. “We are not allowed to go through a third wave,” he said characteristically.

At the same time, Mr. Mitsotakis proceeded to self-criticism regarding his photo session in Parnitha, along with other citizens who were traveling on motorcycles, during his exercise on a bicycle. Speaking of “carelessness”, he explained that “it was wrong that I agreed to be photographed without a mask, not that it was because of a bicycle” and referred to the need for all of us to follow the rules faithfully.

As for this Christmas, he announced that it will be allowed to gather up to two families per house, citing nine people as a maximum number.

Responding to a question about how it would work with the knowledge it has today, he said the government would take stricter measures for northern Greece a week earlier, but clarified that there were no such requests then. Now, according to the Prime Minister, the problem is not centered so much in the large urban centers but in the periphery, as Mr. Mitsotakis said, there is obviously a greater relaxation. However, as he said, with the current experience of the government, it would have been stricter in its public message in the July period after the successful treatment of the first wave, for the fact that the epidemic will return. Referring to the tourism sector and if it made it worse to open it in summer, the prime minister was absolute. “We have no indication that tourism played a role in the intensity of the second wave,” he said, emphasizing that if that were to happen, there would be signs from September.

Mr. Mitsotakis also spoke about the economic consequences of the pandemic, emphasizing that the recession in Greece will be great, as it will be in Europe. He described the European funds to be disbursed in 2021 as “a huge recovery opportunity”, while leaving a “window” of new debt arrangements piling up throughout this health crisis, saying that “the repayment rate it will be evaluated when the economy restarts. ” As for whether the government is considering canceling the debts or part of them, he responded with the phrase “no comment.

At the end of the interview, the Prime Minister also spoke on the subject of Turkey, highlighting that the vast majority of EU countries. It is with the Greek positions and that if a solution is not found through dialogue with Turkey, then we must go to the International Court of Justice in The Hague.