Statement by President von der Leyen on Greece's recovery and resilience plan

Dear Prime Minister,

Dear Kyriakos,

Let me begin by thanking you for having me here, indeed at the cradle of - you said it - democracy and philosophy. And this combination - of course, democracy is blossoming if there is the philosophy behind it.

And here was the beginning of it. So thank you very much for this very warm welcome.

And indeed, these are decisive times. And we see that we have, after a very difficult period of the pandemic, now increasing success. The vaccination progress is there, the recovery is underway.

And we can start to look in the future with hope and with confidence.

Millions of Europeans, I know, are looking forward to return to Greece for their holidays. We have been waiting for that for so long.

And I really want to thank you, Kyriakos, for the important contribution that the Greek government made for our EU Digital COVID Certificate. I used it today, when coming here.

So I remember very well when you, in January, started with that idea and spoke to me about that. And that is when we said: ‘This is the right thing to do.' And today we have it in record time, we were there.

But, of course, I will never forget how Europeans, and how you, the Greek people, acted during the darkest hours of this crisis, the pandemic. It was with determination; with fortitude; but above all with a spirit of solidarity.

These are exactly the values that are enshrined in NextGenerationEU. Our recovery programme is unmatched in its scale and its ambition. It is an exceptional response, of course for an exceptional crisis.

We are reshaping our continent for decades ahead - you were describing it for Greece 2.0. We are digitising our economies, as we have never done before.

We are making the European Green Deal i a reality. And we are equipping our societies to be stronger and more resilient. Our plan is worth EUR 800 billion in today's prices. It is the largest recovery package in Europe since the Marshall Plan. And it is the recovery that Europe needs, now and in the future.

Today, I am very happy to announce that the European Commission has decided to give its green light to Greece's recovery and resilience plan - Greece 2.0, as you have named it. This follows excellent cooperation between our teams - I really thank you for that. This was outstanding; it follows a thorough assessment by the Commission.

The plan was designed here, in Greece. And it will spur a growth that will be led by the Greek people and it will be owned by the Greek people.

There is no doubt that it will deeply transform Greece's economy, which will embrace the twin green and digital transition. The reforms and investments it foresees will make Greece emerge stronger, more resilient, and better prepared for the future.

Almost 40% - to be exact, it is 37.5% - of the plan will support our green objectives, for example, from protecting the climate through large-scale energy efficiency renovations - of building for example.

Mostly important, clean and sustainable mobility; or for example protecting biodiversity, with the rehabilitation of thousands of hectares of land, for example in Western Macedonia or in the Peloponnese.

And the Greek plan has the same level of ambition on our second goal, that is, digitalisation. The plan devotes over 23% to it. And it will invest massively. It will invest in 5G networks - you said it - and high-speed broadband infrastructure to connect the whole country.

It will invest in the digitalisation of small and medium enterprises, so they can access new markets. It will make public administration go digital too, for better services for all - that is a better environment for our SMEs. And, of course, it will improve the digital skills of people, so that the Greek people are equipped for the jobs of tomorrow.

Finally, the plan brings about crucial reforms of the country's public administration, for example, including the tax and justice system, and reforms of the business environment and labour market, to boost the competitiveness of Greek companies and to create jobs - new jobs, sustainable jobs, jobs for the future.

I am deeply convinced that these reforms, this plan will make Greece come out stronger than ever before.

In short, the plan clearly meets the demanding criteria we have jointly established. It is ambitious, it is far-sighted and, most importantly, it will help build a better future for Greece, for the Greek people, and for the European Union as a whole.

Because we all know NextGenerationEU will deliver so much more than 27 individual recovery plans ever could. Our approval today is an important milestone for the disbursement of EUR 30.5 billion over the next years. Once the plan is approved by the Council, we will be ready to disburse the first funds in July.

But this is by no means the end of the journey. There is still a lot of work to do. Hard work begins now. The implementation of Greece's ambitious plan represents a challenge, but it is also a big opportunity.

The good thing is that today, Europe and Greece are together in this endeavour. We, Europeans, decided to come out of this crisis together and lend each other a helping hand. And together, we are writing history. And this is why your success, Greece's success, is also a European success.

It is with pride and with confidence in our European future that I can hand over now to you, Kyriakos, NextGenerationEU for Greece.

Efharisto.