Earlier this year, Greece granted the postal vote to its citizens globally – the first time postal voting was established there. Theodoros Livanios, alternate minister of the interior, visited Australia this week to encourage the diaspora to vote in the European elections in June, and to strengthen diplomatic ties between the two countries. Canberra Daily met the minister at the Greek Embassy in Canberra.

This was Mr Livanios’s first visit to the antipodes, and he was impressed.

“I would say that Australia is a magnificent country,” he said. “Not only do I feel like being in Greece, due to the Greek diaspora, but also I can see how warm the Australians are. I see a very beautiful country with huge prospects and magnificent landscapes… I’m very happy to be here, and looking forward to coming back very soon.”

Mr Livanios had begun his visit in Melbourne (21 to 23 March), the third largest Greek city in the world, after Athens and Thessaloniki. Then to Sydney (24 to 26 March), where he and thousands of Greek Australians attended the Greek Independence Day celebrations on Monday. Finally, to Canberra; he was charmed by its trees and green fields, so different from Athens.

The minister lunched with members of the Greek community at the Hellenic Club, which he said was one of the most magnificent buildings for the diaspora worldwide. Shortly before our interview, he visited the Australian War Memorial; the two nations had fought together during the two world wars. That evening, he would meet Prime Minister Albanese and opposition leader Peter Dutton at Parliament House to celebrate Greek Independence Day with the Australian Parliamentary Friends of Greece.

“I’m delighted to find how strong are the bonds between Greece and Australia,” Mr Livanios said.

The two countries have a close bilateral relationship and strong community ties.

“The diaspora bring Greece everywhere… It’s amazing seeing how the Greek diaspora here has progressed. A lot of people who came here very poor during the beginning of the previous century, their descendants are very [prosperous]…

“It was amazing [how] the Greek diaspora keep their faith, their language, their religion, their customs, and you can see how they have transferred the knowledge from their forebears to their children and to the third generation. The Greek diaspora is the strongest bridge you can ever imagine between our two nations.”

On 9 June, all Greek citizens, wherever they live, will have the right to vote for 21 Members of the European Parliament. As in Australia, voting is compulsory in Greece, but until recently, Greek citizens living abroad needed to prove that they had resided in Greece for at least two out of the last 35 years, and to have submitted a tax declaration for income in Greece within the last two years.

The centre-right New Democracy party – elected in 2019, and re-elected last year with an absolute majority – removed those barriers.

“We are trying to modernise the Greek state,” Mr Livanios said. During the last five years, that modernisation has included digitising the Greek state, reducing bureaucracy, and developing a sophisticated COVID-19 vaccination system.

“One of the things that we need to upgrade is our quality of democracy,” Mr Livanios said. “We strongly believe that turnout helps democracy. The higher the number of people who are voting, the stronger is our democracy. Since Australia has a large number of diaspora – Greek citizens, so they can just grab a plane and come to Greece and visit – we try to find a way to help them vote if they want in order to participate and share their opinion with us who are living in mainland Greece.”

Greek citizens who wish to vote in the EU elections must register online by 29 April. The process, Mr Livanios said, is simple and does not take more than five minutes.

As of 2 March, the Greek newspaper Kathimerini reported, only 87 Australians had registered for postal voting – but that was before Mr Livanios’s visit, and he expects those numbers to increase (even if at the last moment). He said the Greeks to whom he talked in Sydney and Melbourne were very interested.

“It’s very important for them, because the more they register, the more influence they will have on Greek politics,” Mr Livanios said.

The European Union might seem distant, and Australia is not a member, but Mr Livanios argues that it is still relevant to Australians. Over its five-year term, the European Parliament will take many serious decisions on environmental policies – a worldwide issue. It must develop robust policies on foreign affairs such as the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Middle East, and Europe-Turkey relations. The EU has tools for funding infrastructure works in Greece, or for social welfare and closing social gaps. After the COVID-19 pandemic, the EU invested €806.9 billion to rebuild post-COVID Europe; Greece will receive more than 30 billion euros to digitise the whole state, and implement environmentally friendly policies.

“If we have a very strong voice in the European Parliament, then the outcome will be better for Greece,” Mr Livanios said.

After the European elections, prime minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis will bring a new law to establish the postal vote for the next national elections, expected to be held in 2027.

“We are open to any suggestions that can make the whole process more easy and more interesting to the Greek citizens who live abroad,” Mr Livanios said.

The Greek government has also committed to address delays at its consulates in Australia. After the debt crisis of 2007–08 and ensuing recession, Greece cut funding for its foreign missions, leading to understaffing. More Greek Australians have been interested in becoming citizens, Mr Livanios said, but tools to serve them have been lacking. Many services will be digitised; a mixed model will be introduced so applicants can submit their papers digitally and only visit the consulate for final verification. Local staff will be employed to deal with the backlog.

Mr Livanios thanked the Greek community for their support for Greece, and for “keeping Greece in their hearts and their minds”.

“I congratulate them, thank them, and tell them that the Greek states should be, must be, much closer to them.”

The Greek president, Katerina Sakellaropoulou, will visit Australia in November, and Prime Minister Mitsotakis intends to come here at the beginning of 2025. The two governments are likely to discuss worldwide politics, including Ukraine; the environment; and issues affecting the diaspora, such as finalising a double tax treaty.

Mr Livanios is certain these visits will strengthen the relationship of two countries proudly committed to justice and freedom. Greece is opening to new markets such as India, China, and Japan, countries Mitsotakis visited last year. But, Mr Livanios said, investments from Australia to Greece are more than welcome, and he hopes Australia will continue to invest in a nation whose economy is now booming – The Economist even named Greece its country of the year for 2023. Those investments, Mr Livanios said, would be good for both nations, improve the quality of life in Greece, and lead to a more productive relationship between Greece and Australia.

“We strongly believe that our common values – freedom, democracy, justice – should be number one in our agenda for the world that we share,” Mr Livanios said. “Having very strong and good relations will help us to understand each other’s needs more efficiently and work together with our allies for a better world.”