Following the occupation by Italian and German troops in 1940-41 (for which Germany was asked to negotiate possible war reparations in 2019), after liberation in 1944, Greece was the stage for a long civil war that ended in 1949 with the defeat of communist forces. The country assumed its current borders in 1947, with the annexation of the Dodecanese. On 21 April 1967, the military took power and set up the “Regime of the Colonels” that lasted until 1974. The failure of the coup d’état on the island of Cyprus, inspired by the Greek dictatorship, also brought down the regime in Athens and 1974, in a referendum, the Republic was set up. Tensions with Turkey over the matter of Cyprus continue, particularly with regards to the use of offshore gas fields. According to the 1975 Constitution, the Government is responsible before Parliament (300 members elected by direct suffrage for four years); the President of the Republic, who has powers that are, for the most part, representative, is elected by Parliament for five years.

Defence and justice.
Following strained relations with Turkey, at the end of 2020, the country decided to increase military spending by 57%. The resources will be used to purchase 18 Rafale fighter planes from France and increase the size of the army by 15 000 units. The judicial system is based on European continental civil law.

Economic situation.
The Greek economy fell by 8.2% in 2020. Growth prospects are low for 2021 (+3.8%), with an unemployment rate that remains high (16.6%). According to European Commission estimates, growth is expected to return due to the measures implemented by the government and the funds guaranteed by the Recovery and Resilience Plan.

Primary sector
Agriculture & forests.
Agricultural contribution to national production is higher than the European average. The most important crops are vines, olives, cotton, tobacco, cereals and sugar beet. The main wine-producing areas are the Peloponnese coastal areas (along with the islands) and the hill areas of Thessaloníki. Both grapes and dried grapes are more important than wine production (Corinthian raisins, currants from western Morea and the Ionian Islands, sultanas from Crete and Samos, rosaki grapes); special wines are destined for export (the more famous being those from Lefkada, Kymi and Nemea) as well as that are more liqueur-like (from Samos, Santorini, Cephalonia, Naxos and Corfu). Olives are widespread throughout the country; cotton is grown in Attica and Boeotia; tobacco in Macedonia, Aetolia and Thrace; sugar beet in Thessaly, the western Peloponnese and Macedonia. Figs and citrus fruit crops are also widespread.
Livestock & fishing.
Livestock farming does not satisfy the country’s needs; beekeeping is important, as well as fishing (the dispute with Italy for the exploitation of fish resources in the Ionian Sea was resolved in 2020) and sponge harvesting.

Secondary sector
Minerals.
The most important mineral productions are lignite (mined in western Macedonia, in Euboea and in the Peloponnese), bauxite (main deposits are at Ámfissa, Dístomo and Lamía), and nickel. There are mines of chromite, manganese, lead, zinc, magnesite and pyrite.
Small amounts of oil are also extracted. Emery (a variety of corundum) is a valuable product from the island of Naxos, as is marble.
Energy and industry.

Thermo-electric production predominates (linked to the lignite deposits). There is an electrical power link between Greece and Italy on the bed of the Strait of Otranto.
A gas pipeline connects the country to Turkey; another one to Bulgaria is being built, while the construction works on the TAP (Trans-Adriatic Pipeline) to Italy have been completed. On 2 January 2020, Greece, Cyprus and Israel signed an agreement on the Eastmed gas pipeline, which will transport natural gas from the eastern Mediterranean to Europe. The regasification terminal on the island of Revithoussa, near Athens, was recently expanded.
The industrial sector is poorly diversified: sectors with a low added value predominate, such as food, tanning and textiles. Metallurgy is relatively well-developed (steel, nickel and aluminium). Oil refineries are at Asprópyrgos, Corinth, Eleusis and Thessaloníki. The chemical industry produces, in particular, sulfuric acid, nitric acid and nitrogen fertilizers (in Eleusis and Piraeus). Cotton mills and the carpet industry predominate in the textile sector.
The sugar, tobacco, paper and leather industries are important. Other industries include cement and rubber.

Tertiary sector
Foreign trade.

The trade balance remains in deficit, only in part counter-balanced, at least until 2018-19, by the growth in exports, by income from tourism and by the chartering of the merchant fleet.

Main exports (M US$ - 2017) petroleum products 9 799, aluminium 1 814, home appliances and machinery 1 454, pharmaceuticals 1 333, plastics 1 255, electrical and electronic equipment 1 153, fruit and vegetables 1 145, fruit & vegetable juices and preserves 1 097, iron and steel 1 055, fish 745

Finance and banking.
The banking system is predominantly public. There are, however, plans for privatization.

Tourism. The tourist sector contributes about 20% of the national revenue and employs about 16% of the population.

Transport.
The road system is relatively well-developed, while the railway network is rather limited. Services related to maritime navigation are widespread; the ferry system between the island is very well-developed. The Corinth Canal (6 km) joins the Gulf of Corinth to the Gulf of Aegina, enabling ships to avoid circumnavigating the Peloponnese. The Corinth Canal is crossed by the Rion-Antirion road bridge, one of the longest cable-stayed bridge in Europe.
An agreement was approved in 2016 that granted use of the Piraeus port by the China Ocean Shipping Company (COSCO), which aims to create a trading hub between Asia and Europe. In 2018, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed with China regarding the Belt and Road Initiative.

Education, culture & research.
School is free and compulsory from the ages of 6 to 15. Primary education lasts six years; secondary education is divided into two three-year cycles.

Social security and health.
Health and social security have suffered from cuts on account of austerity measures.