Global Citizen 2024: Mitsotakis’ award, Bourla’s praise and Musk’s compliment to Meloni

The Greek Prime Minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, has been chosen by the Atlantic Council to be named this year as one of its Global Citizens for 2024. Joining Mitsotakis in receiving Global Citizen Awards were the Prime Minister of Italy Georgia Meloni, the President of Ghana Nana Akufo-Addo and top film producer Miki Lee from South Korea.

The Greek Prime Minister, who in his acceptance speech said, among other things, that “this award belongs to the Greek people for their endurance and perseverance”, was presented with the award by Pfizer CEO Albert Bourle.

“What we have achieved in Greece is to show that one can govern from the political centre. That you can be pro-growth but also fiscally responsible. That you can be, and here the words of my good friend Georgia Meloni resonate, a true patriot, focusing on strong defence and border protection, while at the same time being socially liberal, providing high quality public goods and reducing inequalities.”Mitsotakis.

Strongly, he said, ” Monstroisians should not be afraid of the political system,” he said. The prime minister said his government’s re-election was a response to the way in which populism can be defeated.

“The grievances of people who vote for populists are absolutely real, whether they relate to income inequality, identity issues or the consequences of globalisation – the winners and the losers. These are real grievances and we need to be very careful in addressing them and certainly not appear to be disparaging to the concerns of ordinary people. Our government’s emphasis is on policy not politics. It is our responsibility as leaders to find solutions and we will be judged by how much we have improved the lives of our citizens,” he said.

Kyriakos Mitsotakis also referred to Greek-American relations, stressing that “Greece is a stable ally of the United States and a pillar of security and stability in a turbulent region.”

As Albert Bourla said of Kyriakos Mitsotakis, he is “a visionary champion of a new era of economic prosperity, a leader dedicated to his country who has won the trust of the Greeks. A humble leader whose re-election has shown that he keeps his political promises while commanding the respect of world leaders.”

The Italian prime minister was praised by Tesla and X owner Elon Musk, with the South African billionaire singing her praises, saying “she’s more beautiful on the inside than the outside.”

“It’s an honor to be here to present the award to someone who is even more beautiful on the inside than she is on the outside. Georgia Meloni is someone I admire, who has done an incredible job as Prime Minister of Italy. Italy is experiencing record economic growth, record low unemployment. She’s doing great. And she’s also someone who is authentic, honest, true, and that can’t always be said of politicians,” Elon Musk said of Ms. Meloni

“The West must find the strength within itself to move forward,” said Georgia Meloni, adding that “the West often underestimates itself while claiming to be superior to others.”

“We have to start with ourselves. Know who we really are and respect that so that we can understand and respect others. We must regain awareness of who we are as the people of the countries of the West,” the Italian Prime Minister continued.

As she noted, “if the West takes a thorough and honest look at itself, and in particular at its values, it will rediscover the strength to move forward. We should not be ashamed to use and defend words and concepts like nation and patriotism, because they mean more than just a physical place.”

The Prime Minister’s full speech

Ladies and gentlemen, dear Albert, first of all, thank you for your extremely flattering words. I would like to thank the Atlantic Council for honouring me with the Global Citizen Award. I would, however, like to begin by echoing the words of the President of Ghana, saying that I really feel that this award belongs, above all, to the Greek people, for their resilience and perseverance and for what they have achieved over the last few years.

Albert Bourla was right when he described the transformation of a country that a few years ago was seen as the “weakling” of Europe, that suffered a deep economic recession, that experienced social unrest, that experimented with populism, but has now clearly turned a page and is emerging, once again, as a stable democracy with a growing economy.

I thought, in my brief intervention, I would share with you some thoughts on why I believe the Greek experience can be relevant to other countries and why what we have achieved can resonate beyond our borders. Not just for geopolitical reasons – because it is important that Greece is now a stable and predictable ally of the United States and overall a pillar of stability in a very troubled part of this world. I think the Greek experience teaches us some other lessons that I think are important for democracies around the world as we struggle with the waves of populism and with the new divisions that tend to cause rifts in our societies.

I believe that in Greece we have managed to prove that one can govern from the political centre. That you can be pro-growth but also fiscally disciplined. That one can be – let me repeat here the words of my good friend, Giorgia Meloni – a true patriot, focusing especially on strong defence while protecting the borders, but also that one can be socially liberal, focusing on providing high quality public goods but also reducing inequalities.

What I call “new triangulation” has the ability to bring together people of different ideological backgrounds and create a broader coalition that restores fundamental trust in politics.

My government has focused more on policy making and implementation (policy) than politics. I believe that in general, in these times where we sometimes put more emphasis on pure ideology than we should, we should deliver results. The key to success for any government is, ultimately, effective implementation.

Not all issues are ideological. I think it is our responsibility as leaders to seek effective solutions where we can find them. We will ultimately be judged by how much we improve the lives of citizens. We will not be judged simply by how eloquent we are in our public speeches; that is not the measure by which one evaluates the political success of a leader today.

Finally, in these times of intense polarization, I would like to point out that it is critical when confronting populists who believe they have simple solutions to complex problems that we recognize the fact that there are real grievances behind these populists. The grievances of citizens who vote for populists are real, whether they relate to income inequality, to issues of identity, to the consequences of globalisation, to the winners and losers that it produces. These are real grievances and we should treat them with great care, in no way giving the impression that we are dismissing the concerns of the average citizen.

Let me close with a quote from a European leader whom I deeply respect. The former President of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, said something that struck me even before I became Prime Minister. He said that once we are elected, ‘we all know what we have to do, we just don’t know how we will get re-elected if we do what we have to do’. So if there is one lesson from the Greek experience, it is that my hon. Friend was wrong. We were re-elected by doing exactly what was right, and the Greek people rewarded us for it.

So, again, I thank the Atlantic Council for this award, which, I repeat, belongs to the Greek people. Thank you very much.

Albert Bourla’s speech for Kyriakos Mitsotakis

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis is a dedicated leader of my country, Greece, a rising voice for peace and equality around the world, and a visionary champion of a new era of economic prosperity fueled by technology and innovation.

The Prime Minister has earned the trust of the Greek people. His re-election in 2023 showed his growing support, a remarkable achievement when powerful waves of populism are rocking many other sitting leaders around the world.

The Prime Minister is a humble leader and has stated that his re-election is simply a reflection of running a competent government and keeping his promise. I would say that only tells part of the story. When I spend time in Greece – and I go very often – I feel a renewed energy, greater optimism and an appeal for economic growth. It’s a dramatic turnaround from the decade of crisis that followed the global recession, when the Greek economy shrank and unemployment soared.

Many of the country’s best and brightest minds left for elsewhere and foreign investment shrank dramatically. The situation is improving under the leadership of the Prime Minister and everyone is aware of that.

The Economist named Greece as the country of the year in 2023. Prime Minister Mitsotakis has led this huge comeback by strengthening the forces of entrepreneurship and innovation. At the same time, he has also focused on fighting income inequality and helping those most in need. He has promoted major changes in education and health care, as well as progressive moves on diversity and inclusion.