The article praising Greece in "Monocle"

Among other things, it notes that, despite the pandemic, Greece remains on the path of economic recovery and points out that it has mobilized active diplomacy to effectively address the Turkish provocation.

The list includes countries such as Germany, South Korea, France, Japan, Taiwan, Switzerland, New Zealand, Sweden and Canada. Greece is thus ranked ninth in the world and the positive remarks concern not only the economy but also the Greek-Turkish relations in the successful way in which it managed the pandemic and the reversal of the brain drain. The title dedicated to Greece is indicative: "A nation that is doing well, against expectations". In fact, the islands of the country are recorded as a milestone of its soft power, despite the "hit" that tourism suffered due to the coronavirus.

Greece, a nation that is doing well, against expectations

For the Greek economy, the magazine notes that "the election of the Prime Minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis is already bearing fruit", while it symbolically refers to the election of Steve Branakis, former head of Google's creative laboratory, whom the Prime Minister appointed as head of the government's creative bureau to improve the image of the country abroad. The authors also point out that ELSTAT recorded a drop in unemployment in 2020, with sectors such as industrial production and manufacturing recording upward trends, while it is noted that "Athens sees its young people returning from abroad, aiming to set up their business in their homeland ”.

Regarding Greek-Turkish issues, the article points out that Turkey's claims to gas reserves and sovereign rights in the Eastern Mediterranean have effectively mobilized Greek diplomacy. The contacts of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Nikos Dendias, with his Cypriot and Israeli counterpart and EU officials are typically mentioned.

At the same time, the characterization of Greece as a force of soft power by the magazine results in references to symbolic moves to boost the country's international profile. The most characteristic is the granting of Greek citizenship to Tom Hanks and his wife, Rita Wilson. As the authors point out, “this was a really smart move: in 2018, the couple decided to raise money to support the victims of the Mati fire. The Greek authorities reciprocated the generosity with the Greek citizenship. A decision that brought results, with Hanks speaking with very praiseworthy words about Greece during his speech at the Golden Globes in January ".