Alternate Minister of Foreign Affairs Miltiadis Varvitsiotis’ speech at the 2022 Greek-British Symposium-main points (Nafplio, 13-15.10.2022)

Alternate Minister of Foreign Affairs, Miltiadis Varvitsiotis argued in favour of deeper bilateral relations between Greece and the United Kingdom in the post-Brexit era, addressing, via a video-recorded message, the Greek-British Symposium 2022, which is being held in Nafplio, with the support of the Delphi Economic Forum, the British Embassy in Athens, the British Council and the Embassy of Greece in London.

Mr. Varvitsiotis referred to the “unwavering historical ties” that link the two countries and expressed support for even greater cooperation with the UK in foreign policy, the refugee-migration issue, the economy, culture, education and shipping.

“At a time of great upheaval”, when “revisionism and war have once again entered Europe”, the Alternate Minister said, it is important to send a message of clear condemnation of revisionism while also strengthening channels of dialogue on the basis of International Law, recalling that the UK is a signatory to the treaties that guarantee our national sovereignty.

The more than 100,000 Greeks living in Great Britain and the 50,000 to 60,000 Britons living in Greece also link the two countries, Mr. Varvitsiotis said, emphasizing the importance to facilitate citizen exchanges between the two countries. In this regard, he specifically mentioned the facilitation of Greeks wishing to study at British universities and British artists wishing to present their work in Greece.

Lastly, the Alternate Minister emphasized the significance of reuniting the Parthenon Sculptures, arguing that by doing so we can “demonstrate that essential pieces of world heritage can become links between people”.