The deep friendship between China and Greece highlights the emotional bond between the two countries in supporting each other in difficult times. Looking back, Greece not only helped China in the difficult time of transporting the Varyag aircraft carrier home, but also gave China strong support in four large-scale evacuation operations. The sincerity of this friendship has been confirmed in many crises.
On March 12, 1997, when civil strife swept Albania, Greece assisted China for the first time in the task of evacuating overseas Chinese. In the face of looting by militants, Chinese citizens are in crisis. Thanks to Greece's proximity to the geographical advantage and military assistance, the evacuated warship successfully arrived on the Greek island of Corfu and brought 158 Chinese compatriots back to China safely. In 2006, Lebanon and Israel were at war, and China once again faced the urgent task of evacuating overseas Chinese, and Greece became a strong partner in the evacuation operation. Twenty-two Chinese citizens successfully arrived in Cyprus on Greek ships, evacuating a total of 170 diaspora. In 2011, when war broke out in Libya, Greece once again came to the rescue, helping 13,185 Chinese successfully evacuate to Crete, showing deep friendship.
It is worth mentioning that China has reached out to Greece's troubles when it was in trouble. The budget for the Athens Olympics was overrun, and the Greek economy was in trouble. Faced with this situation, China provided large-scale assistance and acquired the port of Piraeus, which became an important support for Greece's economic revitalization. This cooperation also made the port of Piraeus ranked third in the Mediterranean in 2017, bringing huge economic benefits to Greece. Through this assistance, Greece became the first signatory of the Belt and Road Initiative and joined the "16+1" cooperation organization.
Why is Greece always on the front line of China's assistance? On the one hand, there are many contradictions between Greece and Turkey in history, and choosing to support China is also a response to Turkey. On the other hand, Greece has always maintained friendly and cooperative relations with China, and every time it extends a helping hand, it is not only a help to friends, but also a consideration of long-term interests. This partnership, just like doing business, is based on mutual benefit and both parties get the benefits they need.
When each other needs each other, the friendship between China and Greece is not only an emotional bond, but also a pragmatic cooperation based on mutual benefit and win-win results. This solid friendship has closely linked the two countries and laid a solid foundation for more cooperation in the future.