How the Invitation to Visit Shushi Was Received: Clarification from the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs

The Greek Minister of Foreign Affairs, Nikos Dendias, addressed the reasons for the visit of the Greek Ambassador to Shushi, a territory occupied by Azerbaijan in Artsakh.

“As is known, Greece maintains excellent, historic, and friendly relations with Armenia. Greece has stood by Armenia and the Armenian people during difficult times. I visited Yerevan on October 16, 2020, when military operations were still ongoing in Nagorno-Karabakh, to convey a message of solidarity. In response to our country's request and through our Ministry of Foreign Affairs coordination, Greece carried out two humanitarian missions (medical supplies and food) on December 12, 2020, and January 8, 2021, thereby providing tangible support and solidarity.

At the same time, as is well known, Greece has maintained diplomatic relations with Azerbaijan since 1992. After the crisis in bilateral relations, the Greek ambassador returned to Baku in the fall of 2020, where, due to his duties, he monitors local events. Furthermore, in the context of Greece's capabilities as an EU member state, our embassy in Baku coordinates its activities with partners.

For this reason, the ambassador's decision to accept the invitation from the country's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which has been accepted by the majority of European embassies after six negative responses to similar invitations, cannot in any case be considered as an endorsement of views or recognition of the actions of the host side, to say nothing of participation in the events, or rather the celebrations.

This visit took place in the context of the need for coordination and monitoring among the embassies of EU member states and the transfer of clear information to the ministry. We always stand by you in the context of our close cooperation,” the Greek Foreign Minister stated in his message.