Tensions flared across central and northern Greece as farmers took to the streets, clashing with police over delayed European Union subsidy payments. On Sunday, demonstrators brought hundreds of tractors to the Athens-Thessaloniki highway near Larissa, prompting officers to respond with tear gas. Authorities confirmed three arrests, but the road closures held firm as the protesters vowed to escalate their actions in the coming week.
“We will stay here until [the government] delivers solutions,” said Costas Tzelas, a local farm union representative, speaking amid the throngs of tractors blocking traffic.
The delays follow revelations of a subsidy fraud scandal, in which some farmers allegedly falsified land and livestock records to claim EU agricultural funds. Greek authorities say these fraudulent applications amounted to more than 30 million euros ($35 million) in misallocated payments under the Common Agricultural Policy.
Deputy Minister of Rural Development and Food, Christos Kellas, told public broadcaster ERT that payments had been reduced as investigations continue. “They have received 100 million euros [$116 million] less for now,” he said, adding that legitimate farmers would receive their full entitlements after appeals.
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The scandal has prompted intense scrutiny of OPEKEPE, the agency responsible for distributing roughly 2.5 billion euros ($2.9 billion) in EU support to hundreds of thousands of farmers each year. Parliamentary inquiries are underway, and the controversy has already forced the resignation of a minister in Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis’s conservative government.
Adding to their grievances, livestock farmers are seeking redress for the mass slaughter of over 400,000 sheep and goats following a sheep pox outbreak. Authorities have resisted proposals to vaccinate the herds, citing doubts about the efficacy of such measures.
Drone footage from Nikaia near Larissa captured the scale of the protest, showing tractors lined across the highway as demonstrators pressed their demands. For Greek farmers, the protests reflect not just frustration over delayed funds, but a broader fight for recognition and protection in the face of bureaucratic hurdles and regulatory disputes.