Tuesday, 23 March 2021, Düsseldorf, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany: Premier Armin Laschet received the Foreign Minister of the Hellenic Republic, Nikos Dendias, for talks at the State Chancellery. In addition to the fight against the coronavirus pandemic, topics of discussion included the relationship between North Rhine-Westphalia and Greece as well as a European-coordinated migration policy and effective protection of the European external borders. Premier Laschet had last met the Greek Foreign Minister Dendias in person in Athens during his trip to Greece in August 2020.
Premier Armin Laschet as per statement below: “We need European solutions for the continuing tense situation in the Greek refugee camps. North Rhine-Westphalia is helping to take in unaccompanied minor refugees from the Greek islands. However, Greece also needs pan-European solidarity in the distribution of refugees amongst the EU member states. Migration policy also includes the protection of the European external border.
Within the framework of a Frontex operation on the Greek-Turkish border, the North Rhine-Westphalian state police are fulfilling their responsibility.” Foreign Minister Dendias and Premier Laschet likewise exchanged views on the situation in the eastern Mediterranean and Greece’s relations with Turkey. Following the talks with Premier Laschet, Foreign Minister Dendias headed to a NATO summit in Brussels. Premier Laschet: “It is a good signal that NATO partner Turkey has stopped exploring for natural gas in the Aegean. This clears the way for a constructive dialogue. Now it is a matter of clarifying the central issue of maritime borders in talks and creating legal certainty for Greece and Turkey.”
The visit comes after the recent accreditation of the Hellenic Ambassador to Germany, Maria Marinaki that took place on Thursday, 11 March 2021 at Bellevue Palace located in Berlin-Tiergarten.
Ambassador Marinaki is a career diplomat who began her diplomatic service in 1980, and speaks fluent Greek, German, English and French. Albeit she was promoted to the ambassadorial rank in 2015, this is her first foreign ambassadorship, for between 2015 and 2020 she worked for the EU External Action Service as Principal Adviser in the Service for Gender/UNSCR 1325 for Women, Peace and Security and Coordination of EU strategies concerning gender.
For further information:
State Chancellery of NRW: https://www.land.nrw/de/pressemitteilung/ministerpraesident-armin-laschet-empfaengt-den-griechischen-aussenminister-nikos-0
Embassy of the Hellenic Republic in the Federal Republic of Germany (HE Maria Marinaki): https://www.mfa.gr/germany/de/the-embassy/head-of-mission/curriculum-vitae.html
Foto: Andreas Buck
