Former Prime Minister Antonis Samaras criticizes the government’s policy on several issues

Former Prime Minister Antonis Samaras criticized the government on several issues during a speech at a book launch on Monday at the Athens War Museum.

Samaras sharply criticized the government’s policies on migration, foreign affairs, LGBTQ issues and demography, calling on the government to adopt a more right-wing stance.

“The citizens’ message (to the government) was to change policy, not to move faster,” Samaras said, referring to a quote by Prime Minister Mitsotakis after the elections.

Regarding the same-sex marriage law passed in February, Samaras called on the prime minister to listen to the voice of the Greek people and “understand that he is wrong.” He also declared that bringing back migrants was “not a solution.”

Samaras also criticized the government’s handling of foreign affairs, stating that Greece had suffered humiliation from Turkey, Albania and North Macedonia, and expressed skepticism about Greece’s rapprochement with Turkey.

The former prime minister also said New Democracy had abandoned its center-right roots. “Opening up is not the same as mutating,” he said, referring to the party’s ideological profile, which has in recent years moved closer to the center.

Furthermore, Samaras referred to the recent European elections, stating that the record abstention from voting in Greece was a “slap in the face” to the political system by its citizens.