By Nikos Konstandaras
In two world wars and the Cold War, Greece was on the winning side. The cost, in all cases, was high in blood, money and social division. But the gains, too, were great. Greece was rewarded with territory, greater possibilities, and unprecedented prosperity, as a member of NATO and as part of Europe’s unification. We were “on the right side of history” before this became a political slogan. The narrative was simple and true: Along with other nations, Greek men and women had fought against the powers of totalitarianism and injustice, and so we could now enjoy the protection of powerful allies and international law.
This world is being dismantled today. Allies appear to threaten order, injustice is rewarded, certainties are shaken. No one can tell how relationships will play out on the world stage, which side will win, who will be “justified” by history.
NATO and the European Union provided Greece with the double security blanket of being part of the world’s greatest defense alliance and part of the great European economy. It was inconceivable that one day we might have to choose between the United States and the EU. Things have not reached that point, but Donald Trump’s actions are pushing Europe towards greater military self-sufficiency, towards a stronger political presence in the world, and towards greater differences with the United States.
And here we also have the Turkish factor. The faith of the Greeks in NATO never fully recovered after the invasion of Cyprus in 1974, with Turkey’s acting with impunity as it became ever more aggressive and demanding. Now we see that whereas Turkey paid the price for its choices in the two world wars, its (lucrative) neutrality after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, its occupation of part of Cyprus and part of Syria, have not cost it anything. On the contrary, Turkey was invited to a European gathering where Greece was absent. On the other hand, Germany, which caused two world wars last century, is shaping up as the pillar supporting liberal democracy against foreign intervention and domestic threats.
Things are very fluid but there is no dilemma. With our deep democratic convictions, and despite our differences, we Greeks can only ally ourselves with this side in the struggle to be “on the right side of history.”
Source: Kathimerini
