BEIJING: New Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras is in a similar position to Phaeton, the Greek mythological figure given the reins of the sun only to lose control and nearly destroy the earth, Chinese media said Thursday.
The comments came after the newly-elected authorities in Athens said they would halt the privatisation of Greece's biggest port, which China's COSCO group has bid for.
"This is reminiscent of a tale in Greek mythology," said an analysis in The Paper, a government-run new media venture.
In the myth -- with its message that those unfit for power should not aspire to office beyond their abilities -- Zeus kills Phaeton with a thunderbolt to save humanity.
Tsipras' "national salvation" government said it was putting on hold the previous administration's plans to sell a majority stake in the ports of Piraeus and Thessaloniki, and would also halt the privatisation of the top electricity and petroleum companies.
China's giant COSCO group is among the bidders for Piraeus, one of Europe's busiest ports, and the review has unnerved some in the Chinese government.
COSCO already has a 35-year concession to expand the two main container terminals at the port, and both Chinese President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang visited Greece last year.
"We are highly concerned about this," Beijing's commerce ministry spokesman Shen Danyang said Thursday.
"The commerce ministry will closely follow the making of relevant policies of the new government in Greece, keep communicating with the government and urge the Greek government to protect the legal rights and interests of Chinese companies in Greece, including COSCO," he told reporters at a briefing.
Comments
Comments are closed.