ATHENS (Sputnik) — Greek Defense Minister Panos Kammenos on Thursday put forward a proposal to use the Nea Kavala military airfield for accepting tourists, including those from Russia.
"One of the ideas at the moment is using the Nea Kavala airfield not far from Thessaloniki … as a gate for arrivals and departures of eastern countries' tourists … In summer the airfield can accept tourists granted customs privileges by Greece on the basis of bilateral agreement, for example, with Russia, while in winter the airfield can be used for export of production, especially from Northern Greece," Kammenos said at a meeting of the Union of Industry of Northern Greece in Thessaloniki.
Greece is one of the most attractive countries for Russian tourists. This year, the number of Russian tourists bound to Greece is expected to increase by at least 30 percent, according to Russian Culture Minister Vladimir Medinsky.