Greece will ban access to social media for children under 15 from Jan. 1, 2027. Photo: Internet Source

"We have decided to go ahead with a difficult but necessary measure: ban access to social media for children under 15 years old," he said in a video posted on TikTok.

"Greece is among the first countries in the world to adopt such a measure," the prime minister said, adding that he would put pressure on the European Union to follow suit.

Mitsotakis said he used social media to make the announcement so he could address teenagers and children directly: "I know that some of your are going to be angry.... Our aim is not to keep you away from technology but to combat addiction to certain applications that harms your innocence and your freedom."

"Science is clear: when a child is in front of screens for hours, their brain does not rest," he said.

Australia in December became the first country in the world to require TikTok, YouTube, Snapchat and other top sites to remove accounts held by under-16s, or face heavy fines.

Indonesia began enforcing a social media ban for users under the age of 16 in March, and has already issued summons letters to Google and Meta over their failure to comply with the law.

Austria announced last month it would soon ban social media for children up to the age of 14, with a plan to present a new law "as early as this summer".

Spain and Denmark have also announced their intention to introduce a digital age of majority for social networks.