The Greek government has denied a Wall Street Journal report that the US ambassador to Athens, Kimberly Guilfoyle, threatened to topple the Greek government during a dinner with Greek and American officials.
Greek government spokesman Pavlos Marinakis said that the issue of a threat to the government has never been raised and that such an action would not be tolerated.
"I must say and make it clear that there has never been any issue related to a threat to the Greek government and, to be serious, such a thing would never be tolerated," Marinakis declared.
According to the Wall Street Journal, the alleged incident occurred during a dinner in Athens in March, where Guilfoyle became involved in an argument with Greek Energy Minister Stavros Papastavrou.
According to sources cited by the American newspaper, during the conversation about the fall of the Romanian government, the American ambassador allegedly said: "We can do this with any country we want. We can do it here too."
Papastavrou, according to the same report, responded that the United States could not replace the Greek government, which was elected by the citizens.
Kimberly Guilfoyle's lawyer has disputed the Wall Street Journal's description of the conversation. Meanwhile, the Greek government has also denied that there was any threat against her.
Marinakis' statements came at a time when the reporting has also caused reactions from Greek opposition parties, which have demanded clarification regarding the meeting and the published allegations.
In addition to the political issue, the Wall Street Journal article also relates to Guilfoyle's efforts to promote American liquefied natural gas in the Balkans and Greece's role in transporting American gas to Central and Eastern European countries.
Marinakis also rejected claims of the existence of any "political blackmail" regarding American gas, emphasizing that relations between Greece and the US are strategic and based, according to him, on mutual respect and shared values.
