Stavros Papastavrou

Stavros Papastavrou, born in Athens in 1967, was appointed minister of state in June 2023 and minister of environment and energy in March 2025. He studied law at the University of Athens. In 1992 he became a fellow of the Greek State Scholarship Foundation and went on to obtain an LL.M in international, European and international economic law from Harvard Law School, Harvard University, with distinction. In 1996, he joined as international associate the Steptoe & Johnson LLP in Washington, DC, where he specialised in international economic law. In 1997 he returned to Greece and joined the law firm Zepos & Giannopoulos as a partner, where he later became the head of the capital markets, banking and finance department. He acted as the leading legal advisor in a number of privatisations, mergers and acquisitions. He has been a legal adviser to several multinational companies and has served as managing director of the law firm Stavros N. Papastavrou & Associates.

As head of the prime minister’s Office for European Affairs and International Relations, he was the chief negotiator with the international lenders of the Greek State (2012-15). He also served as the coordinator of the Greek-German Partnership. He was secretary of international relations and European affairs of the New Democracy Party (2004-12), member of the Political Council of the European People’s Party (EPP) and MEP candidate in the European elections in 1999 and 2009. In the 1990s, he was elected as a member of the Central Committee of ONNED (New Democracy Youth Organisation), where he served as secretary for international relations and European Affairs. He was a founding member of the Youth of the European People’s Party (YEPP) and was elected president of DEMYC (Democrat Youth Community of Europe, 1997-2001), president of EDS (European Democrat Students, 1989-1991) and vice-president of IYDU (International Young Democrat Union, 1997-2000).