In testimony before the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Wednesday, Kimberly Guilfoyle, the newly appointed U.S. Ambassador to Greece, outlined her priorities for deepening the strategic partnership between Washington and Athens. She emphasized her intention to strengthen Greece’s role as both a key customer of the American defense industry and a critical energy hub for the distribution of U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG) to Europe.
Guilfoyle pointed out that Greece ranks among NATO’s leading countries in terms of defense spending and is planning to allocate 3% of its GDP to defense in 2025, with a long-term goal of increasing that figure to 5%. Much of this investment, she noted, is directed toward acquiring advanced U.S. military systems, including F-35 fighter jets, Apache and Blackhawk helicopters, and modern naval assets. She placed particular emphasis on a proposed co-production program for Constellation-class frigates, framing it as a symbol of growing defense cooperation.
Turning to energy, Guilfoyle underscored Greece’s potential to become a major conduit for American LNG into European markets. She highlighted the country’s strategic infrastructure, such as the LNG terminals at Revithoussa and Alexandroupoli, and expressed support for ongoing and future investments in regional pipeline networks, including the so-called Vertical Corridor. She also backed plans for electrical interconnections linking Greece with Cyprus, Israel, and Egypt—projects aimed at bolstering energy security and diversification across the Eastern Mediterranean and Europe.
Beyond defense and energy, Guilfoyle affirmed her commitment to encouraging more Greek investment in the United States, describing it as part of a broader effort to establish a more balanced and mutually beneficial economic relationship between the two countries.To illustrate the current strength of bilateral trade, she cited recent figures showing that total trade between Greece and the U.S. reached €4.573 billion in 2024. Greek exports to the United States rose by nearly 14% to €2.411 billion, while imports from the U.S. surged by over 43%, increasing from €1.502 billion in 2023 to €2.161 billion.
