“Foreign Minister Giorgos Gerapetritis met today, Wednesday, August 20, in Athens with the Transitional Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates of the Syrian Arab Republic, Asaad al-Shaibani.

The two officials noted that today’s meeting was an important opportunity to strengthen bilateral relations, with the ultimate goal of upgrading them, in a geopolitically fragile context given developments in the Middle East and the Eastern Mediterranean. They also discussed the provision of Greek expertise for institution-building and the promotion of cooperation in the field of migration through the establishment of technical committees.

Mr. Gerapetritis stressed that Greece consistently supports the sovereignty, unity, and territorial integrity of Syria and reiterated the necessity of the Syrian transitional administration honoring its commitments to inclusive governance, without external interference, from which no ethnic or religious community should be excluded.

He further reiterated Greece’s unwavering interest in the protection of Christian populations in Syria and the importance of maintaining open channels of communication between the Syrian transitional government and the Patriarchate of Antioch, as an institution that safeguards and promotes Damascus’ relations with the Greek Orthodox and, more broadly, the Christian flock in Syria.

He also highlighted the importance of adherence to International Law, particularly the Law of the Sea, as well as respect for the sovereign rights of neighboring states.

Mr. Gerapetritis and Mr. al-Shaibani confirmed their intention to promote regional cooperation through the establishment of a trilateral framework with the participation of the Republic of Cyprus, with a possible first meeting at Foreign Minister level next September, in the context of the 80th United Nations General Assembly in New York.”