Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis visited the tiny islets of Ro and Strongyli for the first time on Saturday morning, before chairing a meeting at the town hall on the nearby island of Kastellorizo where officials outlined a 27 million euro plan covering 37 infrastructure projects.
Mitsotakis said his commitment was clear: within the next four years, he told the mayor and the regional governor, the government had to close all the open problems that had plagued the island for decades.
The meeting at the town hall was attended by Parliament Speaker Nikitas Kaklamanis, South Aegean Regional Governor Giorgos Hatzimarkos, New Democracy Dodecanese lawmakers Emmanouil Konsolas and Vasilis-Nikolaos Ypsilantis, Chief of the Hellenic National Defence General Staff General Dimitris Houpis, and New Democracy Political Committee Secretary Konstantinos Kyranakis.
Port and infrastructure works
Officials gave particular weight to rebuilding the quays of Kastellorizo's port, a project for which funding has now been secured and which is being prioritised through the EU-backed NSRF programme.
Beyond the port, the wider 37-project plan includes replacing critical sections of the water supply network, installing an integrated telemetry and control system, and upgrading the sewage network and treatment facilities. The 27 million euro package spans six areas: energy transition, sustainable resource management, environmental protection, entrepreneurship and innovation, digital transformation and workforce development.
Housing for public workers
The meeting also covered housing for public employees who serve or will serve on the island. The Ministry of National Defence is currently building 12 homes, some of which will go to healthcare and teaching staff, while the Coast Guard is planning nine further homes for its own personnel. The defence ministry is also repairing four homes with funding from the Hellenic Parliament.
Separately, the Ministry of Social Cohesion and Family is transferring a 19-acre plot to the municipality, where 30 old homes deemed unfit for use will be replaced with new housing. That project will be funded by the Interior Ministry and developed through the Greek Growth Fund.
Health service upgrades
Before the town hall meeting, Mitsotakis visited the multi-purpose regional medical office of Megisti, where he was briefed on the unit's capabilities and the push for higher-quality health services.
Alongside regular visits by a cardiologist and a paediatrician from the Rhodes Health Centre, the island is finalising the hiring of a director of general and family medicine and a director of internal medicine, both funded through the Stelios Philanthropic Foundation. An announcement for two nursing positions is expected soon.
Visit to military outposts
Accompanied by Kaklamanis, Houpis and Hatzimarkos, Mitsotakis visited surveillance outposts and spoke with armed forces personnel and conscripts serving there.
From Ro and Strongyli, which he visited together for the first time on Saturday morning, Mitsotakis said the government stood by the Megisti island group so that it would keep prospering and attract more permanent residents.
On Ro, he was briefed on a new pier and shown the outpost's new central building, its restaurant and kitchens, and newly built guesthouses for the armed forces.
Prime minister's statement
After the Kastellorizo meeting, Mitsotakis thanked the mayor and his team for a substantive discussion and said he was glad to be on the island ahead of what he called a very significant celebration the following day.
He said a full review had been carried out of outstanding infrastructure work, singling out port restoration, resolving sewage treatment and water management, providing quality housing for public servants who choose to settle on Kastellorizo, and environmentally focused projects including zero-waste rubbish management and solar power to support the island's electricity generation.
He added that the Parliament Speaker and the Hellenic Parliament would generously fund the restoration of certain spaces and homes so that, by next summer, doctors choosing to come to Kastellorizo could at least be housed in dignified, quality conditions.
Looking at an old photograph during the event, Mitsotakis asked the mayor when it was taken. Mayor Nikolaos Asvestis replied that it dated from 1917, under French administration. Mitsotakis recalled that Kastellorizo once had more than 10,000 permanent residents, and said the aim now was to use every available means to attract more permanent population back to the island.
Asvestis thanked the prime minister, the Parliament Speaker, Hatzimarkos and the local MPs, calling the talks constructive, and said Mitsotakis would announce in the coming hours further details of the projects discussed and the funding streams the island intends to pursue.
Wreath for the Lady of Ro
The prime minister laid a wreath at the monument to the Lady of Ro and visited her house, which has been turned into a museum. The Lady of Ro, Despina Achladioti, is remembered in Greece for raising the Greek flag on the islet every day for decades and has become a national symbol of the country's easternmost outposts.
Mitsotakis was also accompanied by New Democracy Dodecanese MPs Giannis Pappas, Emmanouil Konsolas, Mika Iatridi and Vasilis-Nikolaos Ypsilantis.
He additionally visited the Hellenic Navy's fast missile patrol boat "Ypoploiarchos Grigoropoulos," which is stationed at Kastellorizo.
