Nikos Dendias calls attention to humanitarian crisis in Mariupol

Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias on Monday called attention to the humanitarian crisis in the besieged port city of Mariupol, which hosts a sizeable ethnic Greek minority, adding that Chechen fighters had joined Russia’s offensive.

Dendias was speaking ahead of a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels to discuss the war in Ukraine, which entered its 26th day on Monday. It will be the third such gathering since the invasion in late February.

He added that the Greek government was doing its best “to safeguard the future” of the Greek Diaspora in Mariupol.

FM Dendias hosted working breakfast with counterparts from EU, North Macedonia

Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias on Monday hosted a working breakfast with his counterpart from North Macedonia, Bujar Osmani, and the participation of the other European Union foreign ministers.

Also present were EU High Representative Josep Borrell and European Commissioner for Enlargement Oliver Varhelyi. The focus was on the accession process of North Macedonia and the European perspective of the Western Balkans, according to a foreign ministry post on Twitter.

Dep FM Katsaniotis in Brussels for European Humanitarian Forum

Deputy Foreign Minister Andreas Katsaniotis will represent Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias at the first “European Humanitarian Forum” that will be held in Brussels on Monday, a foreign ministry announcement said.

The Forum is co-organised by the European Commission and the EU French Presidency with the aim of establishing dialogue and coordinating the actions of the decision-making bodies in the EU and the wider international humanitarian community in cases of humanitarian crises.

On the occasion of his visit to Brussels, Katsaniotis will visit the Orthodox Archdiocese of Belgium, which is also the exarchate of the Netherlands and Luxembourg, and hold a series of meetings with Greek community organisations in Belgium.