Minister of Foreign Affairs George Gerapetritis’ statement to ERT TV and journalist Nikos Meletis on the third day of the 80th Session of the UN General Assembly (New York,[...]

JOURNALIST: Minister, do you think that the cancellation of the meeting between the two leaders yesterday could signal the end of the period of calm waters in the Aegean?

G. GERAPETRITIS: A meeting was scheduled between the two leaders. It is obvious that there was a change in the program due to subsequent meetings, which were extremely important. An effort was made today to find a suitable time slot. This is unlikely to succeed. I believe that stopping the dialogue is out of the question. On the contrary, I think we have managed to establish a structured dialogue with Türkiye, recognizing the value of communication channels, so that crises do not occur. There will be an opportunity for a meeting between the two leaders in the near future.

JOURNALIST: You had a meeting with your Egyptian counterpart. Are there any developments regarding the Holy Monastery of Saint Catherine on Mount Sinai?

G. GERAPETRITIS: We have a strategic partnership with Egypt, which is very deep and is developing over time. There are many bilateral and regional issues. For us, Egypt is a strategic partner and we will continue our efforts to find common alliances and policies to further develop.

Particularly concerning the issue of the Monastery of Saint Catherine on Mount Sinai, I would like to mention that following the normalization in the Monastery's internal administration, we are continuing our efforts with my Egyptian counterpart to reach an agreement that will ensure the Monastery's continuity and sustainability and will safeguard its Greek-Orthodox character in perpetuity. It is an extremely complex technical discussion, since this issue dates back centuries. In the coming period we will try to find a functional solution so that the Monastery can maintain its character unchanged.

September 24, 2025