The most jarring domestic event was a coordinated triple arson attack in Thessaloniki in the early hours of Wednesday, targeting three New Democracy officials within seventeen minutes. The third device caused the death of one woman — the mother of a former ND parliamentary candidate. Investigators are focusing on a group of approximately thirty anarchists. The counterterrorism division has taken over the inquiry. Mitsotakis travelled immediately to Thessaloniki, promised "zero tolerance" and told perpetrators: "We will find you and deliver you to justice." The attack recalls Greece's long history of far-left political violence, though organised armed groups have been largely dismantled since the early 2000s.
On the geopolitical front, the NATO summit in Ankara on 7-8 July is casting a long shadow. Trump is expected to approve the sale of 80 GE F110 engines — worth over $700 million — to power Turkey's KAAN fighter, a significant boost to Ankara's air force at a moment when its fleet readiness is declining relative to Greece's upgraded F-16 Vipers, Rafale jets and forthcoming F-35s. Full Turkish re-entry into the F-35 programme remains legally blocked by CAATSA and domestic US political resistance, but the engine sale is being read in Athens as a signal of the direction of travel.
US Defence Secretary Hegseth is also reportedly considering a brief Athens stop either side of the summit — not an official visit, but substantive enough to include meetings with Dendias and Mitsotakis. Greece's own NATO obligations are also pressing: the alliance is asking Athens to contribute approximately €600 million for Ukraine before year-end, a demand the government finds difficult given budget and electoral constraints. Athens has proposed paying in tranches of €150-200 million. Greece continues to supply ammunition and older weapons systems but refuses to part with its Patriot batteries, which Kyiv urgently needs.
The Greek-US partnership, meanwhile, was on prominent display at a reception marking the 250th anniversary of US Independence Day, where Ambassador Guilfoyle highlighted F-35 procurement, Souda Bay, Alexandroupoli as a NATO logistics hub, and expanding energy cooperation in the Ionian Sea involving ExxonMobil, Chevron, Hellenic Energy and Energean.
Domestically, a new poll projects New Democracy at 30.4%, up 1.9 points, with ELAS also gaining 1.9 points to reach 17.1% — consolidating its position as the clear second force. PASOK stands at 11.4%, Karystianou's Hope for Democracy slips to 7.5%, and the Communist Party holds at 6.2%. The government's reading of the electoral calendar appears to have stabilised: cabinet signals and Mitsotakis's own language point firmly to spring 2027, with the second half of 2026 focused on infrastructure completion, a final Recovery Fund disbursement in September, a further €1 billion in agricultural subsidies, and the Thessaloniki Fair fiscal package.
The constitutional revision process is also approaching its conclusion, with a parliamentary committee due to present proposals by mid-July and two votes scheduled in August and September — though with opposition parties declining to support the government's proposals, most articles will pass only by simple majority, making the required three-fifths majority in the next parliament highly unlikely.
The economic picture this week was double-edged. Unemployment fell to 8.1% in May, the lowest in years, with youth unemployment down sharply to 16.8%. Economic sentiment edged up to 108.3 points in June. Yet the UBS Global Wealth Report presented a sharper structural picture: average wealth per adult grew 9% over five years to roughly $143,000, but median wealth fell 18% to around $59,000 — the divergence driven by wealth concentration at the top, with the number of millionaires rising to a record 82,000 and billionaire wealth surging over 50%, while household assets remain overwhelmingly concentrated in real estate rather than financial instruments.
An OECD survey published this week added a different layer: confidence in government fell to 24% in 2025 from 32% in 2023, with 64% of Greeks reporting low or no trust — a decline against a broadly stable OECD average, and all the more striking for occurring alongside measurable economic improvements. Trust in political parties stands at just 15%, and in the civil service at 24%, well below the OECD average of 45%. The OECD frames Greece as a case of trust lagging economic recovery after deep structural damage, with the 2012 low of 7% still casting a long shadow. The judicial system compounds this picture: civil and commercial cases take an average of 737 days to resolve in first-instance courts, against an EU average of 100 days, with consumer protection cases averaging 4.5 years.
On the business and trade front, the EU's new €3 customs fee on small parcels from third countries — in force since 1 July — has cut Chinese platform volumes entering Greece by an estimated 50% in its first week, though industry sources expect the effect to moderate over time as platforms adjust logistics and pricing. Tourism continues to outperform, with the National Bank of Greece projecting 3% nominal hotel revenue growth for 2026 despite the Gulf crisis doubling jet fuel costs, sustained by Greece's heavy dependence on the European market and strong underlying demand.
Taken together, this week's picture is one of widening gaps — between government trust and economic indicators, between average and median wealth, between employment growth and wage adequacy, between NATO demands and fiscal room — at a moment when Greece's external strategic position is arguably stronger than at any point in decades.
* Written from Athens. Focused on power, institutions and political behavior — beyond the headlines.