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Greece’s OstpolitikThe Unholy Alliance: Athens Military Regime’s Ties with the Communist Bloc

Greece’s Ostpolitik: The Unholy Alliance: Athens Military Regime’s Ties with the Communist Bloc [The Greek military regime’s policy towards Communist countries from 1969 until 1973 was a constellation of political, economic and geopolitical factors. The Colonels’ non-political relationship with the “hateful communists” was based on reasons related to domestic propaganda and the regime’s attempt to create the impression of an independent foreign policy. Despite the downside of the legitimisation of a staunch anti-Communist dictatorial regime, Eastern European countries embraced Greece’s opening, with a view to end their marginalisation following the Prague Spring. In fact, it served very effectively propaganda purposes for both sides. The Greek military regime could boast of its independent foreign policy outside the country and unsettle the leftist opposition inside. The Soviet Bloc demonstrated its technological and economic achievements and entertained the international outcry against the Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968. In the Soviet propagandist discourse, the Western capitalist states flattered them, to try to establish ties with Communist states despite their ideological aversion, in order to gain benefits. Moral indignation was not allowed to affect the self-interest of the countries involved. In retrospect, it can be easily concluded that it provoked much more perplexity and concern than it really deserved. Undoubtedly, it was marked by some spectacular events, such as the diplomatic normalisation of relations with some countries to which the Greek state had had only limited ties or no ties at all, the clinching of trade deals, as well as the exchange of official visits at the highest level. However, it brought limited tangible results in economic terms (the trade volume declined compared to the previous period) and, contrary to fears in the Western camp amid serious political unrest in the Middle East, North Africa and Europe threatening to disrupt the power equilibrium in the wider region, did not affect Greece’s position in the NATO Alliance at all.] http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png

Greece’s OstpolitikThe Unholy Alliance: Athens Military Regime’s Ties with the Communist Bloc

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References (10)

Publisher
Springer International Publishing
Copyright
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021
ISBN
978-3-030-61128-6
Pages
87 –113
DOI
10.1007/978-3-030-61129-3_5
Publisher site
See Chapter on Publisher Site

Abstract

[The Greek military regime’s policy towards Communist countries from 1969 until 1973 was a constellation of political, economic and geopolitical factors. The Colonels’ non-political relationship with the “hateful communists” was based on reasons related to domestic propaganda and the regime’s attempt to create the impression of an independent foreign policy. Despite the downside of the legitimisation of a staunch anti-Communist dictatorial regime, Eastern European countries embraced Greece’s opening, with a view to end their marginalisation following the Prague Spring. In fact, it served very effectively propaganda purposes for both sides. The Greek military regime could boast of its independent foreign policy outside the country and unsettle the leftist opposition inside. The Soviet Bloc demonstrated its technological and economic achievements and entertained the international outcry against the Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968. In the Soviet propagandist discourse, the Western capitalist states flattered them, to try to establish ties with Communist states despite their ideological aversion, in order to gain benefits. Moral indignation was not allowed to affect the self-interest of the countries involved. In retrospect, it can be easily concluded that it provoked much more perplexity and concern than it really deserved. Undoubtedly, it was marked by some spectacular events, such as the diplomatic normalisation of relations with some countries to which the Greek state had had only limited ties or no ties at all, the clinching of trade deals, as well as the exchange of official visits at the highest level. However, it brought limited tangible results in economic terms (the trade volume declined compared to the previous period) and, contrary to fears in the Western camp amid serious political unrest in the Middle East, North Africa and Europe threatening to disrupt the power equilibrium in the wider region, did not affect Greece’s position in the NATO Alliance at all.]

Published: Feb 1, 2021

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