Parliament Speaker predicts 2020 economic upswing, resolve toward Turkey

Parliament Speaker Konstantinos Tasoulas struck an optimistic note about what is in store in in 2020 in remarks just before Christmas.

At the same time he underlined Greece's peaceful resolve in dealing with Turkey's threat and the consequent escalation of tensions in the Aegean and the Eastern Mediterranean.

He said there will be an upswing not just in the economy where he said Greece can become a model country.

He also projected a "normnalisation of relations with our threatening neighbour but did not elaborate how that might happen.

"We are in favour of peace but we also have the decisiveness to confront any threat.

In a chat with a traditional Greek musical team Romion Praxeis (Greeks in the Ottoman Empire were called Rum as are the few Greeks remaining in Istanbul), Tasoulas expressed admiration for the culture of the Romioi.

Tasoulas offered a quotation alluding to Turkish provocations, "While for most peoples of the East light comes, for us comes the darkness."