Greek president tells Angela Merkel that Greece often felt alone

Greece’s President Katerina Sakellaropoulou, right, and Germany’s Chancellor Angela Merkel talk during their meeting at Presidential Palace in Athens (AP Photo/Yorgos Karahalis)

Greece’s often-strained relations with Germany took centre stage in a meeting in Athens between outgoing German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Greece’s president, Katerina Sakellaropoulou.

This was Merkel’s first official meeting during her visit to the country whose financial crisis marked much of her 16-year tenure and Germany’s relationship with Europe.