Greek government offers more concessions to protesting farmers

In Athens, Greece, the conservative government has put forward additional support measures for farmers who have been protesting against increasing energy costs and competition from abroad. Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, who was re-elected last year, met with representatives of farmers’ unions to discuss their demands.

Mitsotakis assured the farmers that their concerns would be taken into consideration, as he stated, “I believe we can find common ground, taking into account your justified concerns.”

Despite the government’s previous promises of a one-year extension of a tax rebate for agricultural diesel and discounted power bills, the farmers were not satisfied. They temporarily blocked roads and a border crossing for freight trucks, stating that the measures did not address their worries about rising costs forcing some of them out of farming to seek more stable income sources.

Similar grievances have been shared by farmers in France, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Italy, who have also taken action in recent weeks.

The Greek government announced that farmers will be eligible for cheaper electricity for two years starting from April. This measure will be partly financed from proceeds from renewables and carbon market credits, and electricity prices will be stabilized for a third of their power consumption for another eight years after the initial two years, according to a statement from the energy ministry.

Farmers, after the meeting, stated that they would review the proposals before determining their next steps. Greece has been steadily recovering from a decade-long financial crisis and three international bailouts, with its economy growing faster than its euro zone peers.

Prime Minister Mitsotakis emphasized that Greek farmers have received over 1 billion euros in compensation for crops damaged in natural disasters since 2019, acknowledging Greece’s fiscal limitations.

Notably, hundreds of farmers on tractors in Belgium blocked the roads leading to the port of Antwerp, one of Europe’s biggest container ports, causing serious disruptions to operations as they demanded better pay and working conditions.

(Reporting by Lefteris Papadimas and Renee Maltezou; Writing by Angeliki Koutantou; Editing by Ros Russell)