"Building Bridges: Migration Management, Economic Integration, and Regional Resilience"

This initiative represents a natural evolution of the «Dialogues»’ mission: to create a trusted diplomatic and intellectual space where the Eastern Mediterranean and the broader region can jointly explore complex geopolitical challenges.

Migration has become one of the defining cross-regional issues of our time. The Eastern Mediterranean - simultaneously transit corridors, destination regions, and geopolitical crossroads -  is confronted with mounting pressures arising from overlapping crises. Climate change, conflict-driven displacement, demographic shifts, economic asymmetries, and rising cultural and religious intolerance are reshaping mobility across borders. Migration has long surpassed the boundaries of a humanitarian emergency; it now demands long-term, collective solutions that secure dignity, opportunity, and stability for both migrant populations and host societies.

Our «Dialogue» seeks to move the discussion beyond crisis response and toward sustainable governance. Drawing on comparative experiences from across the Mediterranean, the «Dialogue» will emphasize regional cooperation, human rights, economic integration, and innovation as catalysts for durable policy frameworks.

Particular focus will be placed on Greece’s multi-layered migration experience over the past decades, offering lessons on integration and resilience.

By integrating policy, human values and innovation, this Dialogue aspires to foster an appropriate architecture for humane, smart, and regionally coordinated migration governance, one that moves beyond managing crises to building opportunity.

This «Dialogue» is exceptional in another important way for the «Nisyros Dialogues»®: Taking place before an international audience of global leaders, ministers, organizations, and media at one of the world’s most influential forums, this «Dialogue» underscores the growing soft diplomatic value that the «Nisyros Dialogues - Bridging the East Med»® continue to cultivate.

Don’t miss this unique high-level «Dialogue»!

👉Register to watch the Doha Forum live

📅Saturday, December 6th 

🇬🇷 Athens: 3:30 PM
🇧🇪 Brussels: 2:30 PM
🇹🇷 Istanbul: 4:30 PM
🇺🇸 New York: 8:30 AM

The «Nisyros Dialogues» and the “Georgios M. Mihalos Foundation – Sustainability of Nisyros”, at the Doha Forum 2025:

Greece Emerges as a Pillar of Stability and a “Bridge” of Cooperation in the Eastern Mediterranean

 For the first time, the Greek delegation contributed to shaping the Doha Forum program

Focus on cooperation, solidarity in migration management, and Greece’s role as a source of stability in the Eastern Mediterranean

DOHA, QATAR – December 11, 2025 – The participation of the «Nisyros Dialogues»® initiative at the Doha Forum 2025 was marked by great success, signaling a pivotal step in strengthening Greece’s outreach and visibility in the Gulf region. For the first time, a Greek delegation actively participated in designing the official program of the Doha Forum, an institution of global significance that shapes policy discussions in the Middle East and the Eastern Mediterranean.

This milestone presence went beyond a formal appearance. It contributed meaningfully to shaping the Forum’s agenda, highlighting Greece’s role as a source of stability and a proponent of soft diplomacy in the region. It also served as a catalyst for high-level institutional engagements, further enhancing the country’s diplomatic profile.

Strategic Presence and International Recognition

The «Nisyros Dialogues»® placed the critical issue of Migration and Greece’s diplomatic priorities at center stage. Through the organization of a high-level dialogue titled “Building Bridges: Migration Management, Economic Inclusion and Regional Resilience” and an exclusive keynote address by Greek Minister of Foreign Affairs Mr. Georgios Gerapetritis on the Forum’s main stage, Greece’s strategic vision for the region was clearly articulated.

Key Messages from the Minister of Foreign Affairs: Energy, Connectivity and Geopolitical Alertness

In his remarks, Minister Georgios Gerapetritis analyzed the evolving geopolitical landscape and the dynamics emerging from U.S. foreign policy under President Donald Trump. He emphasized the urgent need for Europe to assume greater responsibility for its own defense and security (“ReArm Europe”), and highlighted Greece’s pivotal role in the EU’s energy security.

He referred extensively to the importance of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) and the Vertical Corridor, positioning Greece as an energy gateway for Central and Southeastern Europe. He also underscored the strategic value of the India–Middle East–Europe Economic Corridor (IMEEC) for regional connectivity and development.

Migration as a Structural Global Challenge and the Need for Regional Cooperation

The central dialogue “Building Bridges: Migration Management, Economic Inclusion and Regional Resilience” highlighted the core dimensions of migration, with distinguished speakers stressing that:

• Malta’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr. Ian Borg, noted that migration can evolve from a source of tension into a development asset when linked to legal pathways for mobility and enhanced cooperation with Southern Mediterranean countries for saving lives and managing flows.
  
  
• Cyprus’ Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Constantinos Kombos, emphasized that migration is fundamentally a political issue requiring genuine European solidarity and targeted regional partnerships—such as those with Lebanon and Egypt—which are already producing a significant reduction in arrivals.
  
  
• Greek MP and former EU Commissioner for Migration, Mr. Dimitris Avramopoulos, stressed the need to move from “crisis management” to a long- term, strategic governance model for migration, based on a unified European approach and fair burden-sharing between North and South.
  
  
• Mr. Panagiotis G. Mihalos, President of the “Georgios M. Mihalos Foundation” and founder of the «Nisyros Dialogues»®, highlighted that migration has become a structural global challenge. He stressed that sustainable stability in the Eastern Mediterranean cannot be achieved without the participation of all key actors—underscoring especially the need for Turkey’s involvement in the dialogue.
  
  

Conclusions

Participation in the Doha Forum confirms the dynamic evolution of the «Nisyros Dialogues»® as an international think tank generating substantive policy insights. Through such initiatives, Greece consolidates its position as an indispensable interlocutor and a bridge of understanding between the Eastern Mediterranean and the Middle East, promoting a positive agenda of stability and soft power in an era of global uncertainty.

Mr. Mihalos stated regarding the presence of the «Nisyros Dialogues»® at the Doha Forum:
“I am particularly proud of the indisputable success of our initiative in Doha. We dared to take a bold step by expanding our activities beyond Greece’s borders and bringing the spirit of the Dialogues to the most influential forum in the Middle East.”

About the «Nisyros Dialogues»®

The «Nisyros Dialogues»® are held annually by the Georgios M. Mihalos Foundation – Sustainability of Nisyros, established in 2021. The initiative serves as an international hub for the exchange of ideas and constructive dialogue on issues related to Eastern Mediterranean Geopolitics, Energy and Security, the Environment, Sustainable Development of Remote Islands, and Intercultural Understanding in the Eastern Mediterranean.

In recent years, the «Nisyros Dialogues»® have evolved into a high-impact event featuring prominent figures from government, politics, diplomacy, academia, civil society, business and journalism.

About the “Georgios M. Mihalos Foundation”

The Georgios M. Mihalos Foundation (NPO) is an international center for the exchange of ideas and constructive dialogue on Eastern Mediterranean affairs. Its mission is to protect and promote the natural and cultural heritage of Nisyros; to elevate a small volcanic frontier island at the southeastern edge of the Aegean—at the crossroads of the Eastern Mediterranean—into an international symbol of sustainable management of human and natural resources; and to help open new pathways for Peace, Security and Development in the Eastern Mediterranean.

The «Nisyros Dialogues – Bridging the East Med»®, the Foundation’s think tank and Forum, is dedicated to generating and promoting ideas and initiatives aimed at positioning the Eastern Mediterranean as a region of Sustainable Development, Intercultural Understanding and International Cooperation.