“We must resist any revisionist ideology that wants to destroy the order of things that the EU defends,” Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias stressed after meeting with Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis in Athens today.

During the meeting, Mr. Dendias briefed his Lithuanian counterpart on developments in the Eastern Mediterranean and on the illegal and non-existent “memorandum of cooperation” between the Tripoli government and Turkey.

Despite their geographical distance, Greece and Lithuania have much in common, Mr. Dendias noted, since both countries are located on the periphery of the European Union and face common challenges and problems.

Foreign Secretary @NikosDendias received Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania G. Landsbergis today

In the center of negotiations: further strengthening bilateral cooperation and coordination 🇬🇷-🇱🇹 in the EU and NATO, yesterday’s visit of Foreign Minister Dendias to Kyiv, immigration and the Eastern Mediterranean https://t.co/eoqLgEYTd8

— Ministry of Foreign Affairs (@GreeceMFA) October 20, 2022

“The huge challenge for both is the Russian invasion of Ukraine,” he said. “A flagrant violation of the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of this country and the Charter of the United Nations.”

Mr. Dendias informed his colleague about his visit to Kyiv, from where he returned this morning. “I lived – for a very short time – in a situation where Ukrainians live because of the bombings,” he said and recalled that his meeting with Ukrainian counterpart Dmitry Kuleba took place in the shelter of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

“I assured him that all European countries will continue to work together to support Ukraine, that is, to protect international law and the principles of the UN Charter, as well as jointly fight against revisionism,” the Greek Foreign Minister noted and added:

“The narrative (including revisionism) that both Lithuania and Greece faced in their history. They are faced with a policy similar to what the Kremlin is now pursuing in Ukraine.”

Mr. Dendias reiterated what he stressed yesterday from Kyiv, that Greek society is facing similar problems “because Greece also has a big and powerful neighbor to the east. A neighbor who issued a threat of war, casus belli directly against our country.”

“A neighbor who calls for the demilitarization of part of our territory, who has concentrated large forces opposite our islands, who calls part of our territory his own, who says that he can come suddenly at night. A neighbor who tells us that if we do not accept what he tells us, the fate of Ukraine awaits us.”

“Greek society can easily understand people who are fighting for their independence and territorial sovereignty,” said the head of Greek diplomacy.

During the meeting, the issue of instrumentalization of migration, the threat that, as Mr. Dendias recalled, both countries faced, as well as the protection of the external borders of the European Union, were also discussed.

Concerning the issue of energy security, Mr. Dendias noted that Greece shares Lithuania’s concerns about the nuclear power plant in Astravets, Belarus, which is only 50 kilometers from Vilnius.

“We have similar concerns about the construction of a nuclear power plant using Russian technology in Akyuyu, Turkey, in an earthquake-prone area,” he said.

“The Greek government sees Lithuania as a useful and important partner in our efforts to mutually protect international legitimacy, with a solid foundation, common principles and values ​​on which our common home, the European Union, is built,” he said. outside. . “These principles are expressed by international law, especially the international law of the sea, in relation to the sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of all countries of the world.”

He also thanked his colleague for Lithuania’s participation in UNFICYP, the peacekeeping force in Cyprus.

“Lithuania has a strategic interest in a stable and secure environment in the Eastern Mediterranean,” said Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis. He said that Lithuania and Greece are close allies in defending democracy and the rule-based order.

“Last year, the Greeks celebrated the 200th anniversary of the Greek Revolution, which became a source of inspiration for Lithuania.” He noted that Greece is a favorite tourist destination for Lithuanians, and he himself has visited Greece many times as a tourist, but stressed that there is room for further strengthening of economic relations between the two countries.

“Europe is shocked by the brutal war unleashed by Russia,” he said, adding: “For the Greeks, Mariupol is not only a city on the map of Ukraine, but also a tragic symbol of cruelty. The Greek community suffered tragic losses. especially from cruel Russian cruelty.

“We must be united and support the people of Ukraine in every possible way in their struggle for freedom,” he stressed. “For decades there has been a false impression in the West that we cannot have a security structure without a strong relationship with Russia. But this year Europe has learned a harsh lesson about the catastrophic consequences of this energy dependency.”

He also noted that international sanctions have many and tangible consequences, and now is the time to accelerate and expand sanctions, not to weaken them. Iran should still send a strong signal, he pointed out, and stressed that “Russia’s increased military efforts cannot go unnoticed, nor can any attempts by authoritarian regimes to follow in Russia’s footsteps and try to destabilize global rules.”

He stressed the need to find a common way to deal with the energy crisis in Europe. Finally, speaking about immigration, he pointed out that the borders of Greece and Lithuania “are the external borders of the EU, and we are experiencing very serious immigration pressure.”

“We appreciate the Greek support during the hybrid attack that we received from the Lukashenka regime, which tried to use immigration as a tool,” he added.

Source: RES-IPE