The universality of the "Freedom or Death" message, the remembrance of the start of the national liberation struggle for a free Greece by the Society of Friends in Odessa, but also the timeless presence of Hellenism in Azov, influencing the Ukrainian national identity and culture throughout the centuries, took a back seat, although the Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelensky was quick to underline them as important for his country in his speech to the Greek Parliament yesterday.
The aim of Mr. Zelenski's speech, which he accepted at the invitation of Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on the day of 25 March, was to give the head of the Ukrainian state the opportunity to address the Greek people, both to their memory and to their collective historical memory, which acts on the need of other peoples, such as the Ukrainian people, to defend by all means their sovereignty and territorial integrity.
As is customary in such cases, the common ground that unites the two peoples is highlighted first and foremost, a practice that President Zelensky has followed in most of the 25 national parliaments in which he has so far intervened, internationalising the attack on his country. The impressions of the Ukrainian President's speech yesterday in the Greek Parliament, however, were almost monopolized by the 'boxed-in' - in his intervention - position of a soldier of Greek origin from Mariupol, who declared himself a member of the Azov Battalion, after causing a political storm and loud walk-outs from the plenary chamber.
The Ukrainian President's wish to include two emblematic speakers - one of whom was the expatriate soldier of the Azov Battalion - was reportedly communicated to the Greek Parliament only yesterday. Specifically, the relevant information was provided about ten minutes before the start of the special session, so there was not enough time for the exact content of the two speeches to be known, while what was assured by the Greek side in those few minutes was that the video did not contain 'harsh images' of civilians. However, even if President Zelenski's message yesterday had been communicated to the Greek Parliament earlier, it is not easy - due to protocol - to intervene in a speech by a head of state, at a time when communication with the political leadership of Ukraine has become extremely difficult due to the war situation.
Added to these difficulties was the impossibility of finding a certified translator in Athens to translate the Ukrainian President's intervention from Ukrainian into Greek, so that the English language would ultimately mediate between Ukrainian and Greek, further restricting the time available to the services of the Parliament, which had all this time been responsible for the arrangements and preparation of President Zelenski's intervention yesterday. As technical matters were being handled by the Parliament, Mr Zelenski's message was attended at that time by members of the national delegation and members of the government, while the President of the Hellenic Republic, Katerina Sakellaropoulou, was also present at the special session.
However, during the broadcast of Zelenski's speech, the projection of a message by an expatriate and member of the Azov Order triggered strong reactions from the opposition, with the government, through its representative Yannis Economou, describing it as "incorrect and misguided".
"President Zelensky, in his speech to the Greek Parliament, described the suffering caused to the Ukrainian people by the Russian invasion and focused on the heroic resistance of its people. The inclusion in his speech of a message from a member of the Azov battalion was wrong and inappropriate," the Government Spokesman said, adding that "it is however outrageous and dishonest for a section of the opposition, led by Mr Tsipras, to use this mistake to justify once again the Russian invasion. An invasion that causes civilian killings and humanitarian destruction."
According to him, "if anything is shameful, it is not taking a clear position. What is shameful is the equal distances and the attitude of drudgery that they maintained in Parliament today. The time has come for clear answers: are they with the Ukrainians, who are fighting for their freedom, or with Putin's invaders? There is no other alternative."
The stance of the Grand Maximus towards the projection of the message of this particular expatriate came as a response to the strong criticism from the opposition, especially from the parliamentary opposition. It is recalled that the President of SYRIZA - Progressive Alliance, who was present in the hall during the projection of Mr. Zelenski's message, called it a "historical shame", intervening in social networks.
In a post, he said that "the Prime Minister bears the ultimate responsibility", adding that "Nazis cannot have their say in Parliament."
Tsipras' post
"The speech by members of the neo-Nazi Azov Order in the Greek Parliament is a provocation. The Prime Minister bears the ultimate responsibility. He spoke of a historic day but it is a historic shame. Solidarity with the Ukrainian people is a given. But Nazis cannot have a say in the Parliament."
Earlier, the Secretary of the CO of SYRIZA - Progressive Alliance, Olga Gerovassili described the intervention of the expatriate as a "big mistake", stating that she will ask for an explanation from the Presidium of the Parliament."
Earlier, the Secretary of the CO of SYRIZA - Progressive Alliance, Olga Gerovassili described the intervention of the expatriate as a "big mistake", stating that she will ask for an explanation from the Presidium of the Parliament. Already during the screening of this message, the party's MPs Nikos Filis, Thodoris Kritsa, Giannis Giolias and Giorgos Varenos had left the hall in protest.
The statement of Ms. Gerovassili:
"We listened today with respect and solidarity to the democratically elected President of Ukraine, Mr. Zelensky, who is resisting Russia's invasion of Ukraine and we express our support. From that point on, however, it is unacceptable that a member of the Azov Order addressed the Greek Parliament today, together with President Zelensky. In a few hours we will have a Conference of Presidents and an explanation will be sought from the President of Parliament, Mr Tasoulas, as to whether he was informed, whether he agreed. Because I think this is a big mistake. The President's responsibility is great and explanations are reasonably requested."
The statement of Mrs. Liakouli:
Today the President of Ukraine Mr. Zelenski addressed the plenary session of the Parliament. In the face of the Ukrainian President, we saw the Ukrainian people and the suffering they are enduring from Russia's brutal invasion of their country and the crimes against humanity, which we have unequivocally condemned from the very first moment. What was made known to us at the Conference of Presidents was Mr Zelenski's speech alone. The question that directly arises is whether the President of Parliament was aware of and approved the speeches of persons who had no institutional competence and for whom no information was given. The responsibility of the President is great and explanations are reasonably demanded.
The reaction of the KKE to the appearance of the fighter with the Azov Battalion during the speech of Volodymyr Zelenski was also strong. "The word shame is not enough to describe what happened today, Greek MPs applauding the Nazi Azov battalions," said KKE MP Thanasis Paphilis. "We believe that we were completely vindicated," he said, adding that those who are judging and apologizing at the moment are unjustified because they follow what NATO and the European Union dictate and cannot say that they were taken by surprise.
For its part, MP25 spoke of Zelenski's unprecedented impropriety in the Greek Parliament with the tolerance of the Presidency and the government, noting that "MP25 spokesman George Loyiadis immediately left the hall as soon as it was perceived that members of the Azov Battalion took the floor", while he described the incident as "unacceptable" and "reprehensible".
The Greek Solution called for the resignation of the Speaker of the Parliament, Kostas Tasoulas, stating that it was "justified for its national choice not to attend Zelenski's speech, which turned into a speech of the Azov Nazis", as it said in a statement.
Amid reactions, the issue was raised universally by the opposition at the Conference of Presidents, with the President of the Parliament, Kostas Tasoulas, assessing the appearance of these fighters as unnecessary and inappropriate, while asking that the "big picture" of a historic moment, such as a leader of a war-torn country addressing the Greek Parliament, should not be tarnished.
Source: protothema.gr
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