Alternate Minister of Foreign Affairs Miltiadis Varvitsiotis’ statement upon arrival at the EU General Affairs Council (Brussels, 22.02.2022)

Alternate Minister of Foreign Affairs Miltiadis Varvitsiotis, described the recognition of Ukraine’s separatist regions as a “flagrant violation of International Law from the part of Russia”, upon arrival today at the EU General Affairs Council in Brussels.

Mr. Varvitsiotis emphasized that Greece is committed to defending International law and the territorial integrity of all UN member states and to this end it will work collectively with its partners to find the most appropriate way to condemn Russia’s conduct. He also stressed that “we will not leave any room for others who plan to imitate such conducts, to do so in the future”.

The Alternate Minister’s full statement is as follows:

“We are meeting today under the shadow of the flagrant violation of International Law from the part of Russia, with the recognition of Ukraine’s separatist regions. Greece is committed to defending International law and the territorial integrity of all UN member states. To this end, it will work collectively with its partners to find the most appropriate way to condemn this conduct and of course we will not leave any room for others who plan to imitate such conducts, to do so in the future. That is why our meeting today, in preparation of the European Council at the end of March, will essentially focus on this issue, along with the elaboration of the rest of the agenda that will make our common home, the European Union, even stronger”.