Greece’s resolve to continue helping people affected by devastating earthquakes in Turkey and Syriasaid the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Paraguay Nikos Dendias.

In his statement after the meeting with his Paraguayan counterpart Julio Cesar Arriola, which ended with the signing of two memorandums between the foreign ministries of the two countries, Nikos Dendias expressed his conviction that the time has come to give a political vision to the bilateral cooperation between Greece and Paraguay, moving forward with agreements in various fields. During the meeting, the foreign ministers of the two countries signed a memorandum of understanding on the establishment of a mechanism for political consultations and a memorandum of understanding on cooperation in the field of diplomatic education between the foreign ministries of the two countries.

Referring to the memorandum of understanding on the establishment of a mechanism for political consultations, Nikos Dendias stressed that it can be used as springboard for strengthening relations between Greece and Paraguay, at the same time, he expressed particular satisfaction with the signing of a memorandum of understanding on cooperation in the field of diplomatic education.

In the introduction to his speech, the Foreign Minister stated that it was a great honor and pleasure for him to be the first Greek Foreign Minister to visit Paraguay during the fourth stop of his trip to South and Central America. Focusing on the possibilities of expanding bilateral relations, he said that long-term friendship and common values ​​of the two countries allow them to develop constructive cooperation on issues of mutual interest: economy, trade, energy, culture, cooperation in international organizations. . Then the Minister of Foreign Affairs expressed particular satisfaction that he had agreed with his Paraguayan counterpart, Greece and Paraguay on mutual support for their candidacies to the UN Security Council.

In addition, he highlighted the role that Greece can play in Paraguay’s relations with the EU, while expressing the desire to conclude and sign an agreement between the EU and MERCOSUR (Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay) as soon as possible. In addition, he noted that he was looking forward to the meeting between the EU and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) in July next year, expressing the hope that it would be an important milestone in the rapprochement of the two continents.

In addition, during the meeting, the foreign ministers of the two countries discussed issues of regional and global interest, with Nikos Dendias stressing that Greece’s foreign policy is deeply based on respect for international law and the UN Charter, as well as the international law of the sea (UNCLOS). ).

In this context, he expressed “tremendous respect” for Paraguay for the fact that, despite being a landlocked country, it has signed and ratified UNCLOS, demonstrating how much it respects international law. In fact, he announced that the two foreign ministers had agreed that they would maintain constant contact and assist the group of closed countries in the UN and other international forums.

Still, did not fail to thank Paraguay for its contribution to the 12 Blue Helmets United Nations peacekeeping force in Cyprus, as well as for its principled position on the Cyprus issue.

Finally, reaffirming his conviction that today’s visit is only the beginning of a strong and fruitful cooperation between our two countries, he extended an invitation to the Foreign Minister of Paraguay to visit Athens as soon as possible.

The visit of Nikos Dendias to Paraguay will end with his speech at the Diplomatic Academy of the country on the topic: “Greece’s foreign policy in the neighborhood and beyond: relations with Latin America on the example of Paraguay.”

It is noted that Paraguay is, after Brazil, Uruguay and Argentina, the fourth stop of the foreign minister’s tour of six countries in Central and South America, which began on Monday, February 6.

Source: RES-IPE