Undeterred, the Greek government reiterates its firm commitment to international law and its decision to unwaveringly pursue a principled foreign policy on the issue of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The open and beyond any diplomatic practice attack on Greece launched by Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova, resorting to threatening insinuations about the fate of our compatriots in Ukraine, gave Athens the opportunity to reiterate its respect for the decisions taken in international organizations in which it participates, including the European Union and NATO.
The overwhelming majority, moreover, with which the United Nations General Assembly approved the resolution condemning Russia's invasion of its neighbouring country, is for the Greek government a sign that our country's stance from the outset is fully in line with international legitimacy.
The fact that Mrs. Zakharova - who, as is well known, before the invasion of Ukraine mocked Westerners by inviting them to say when war would break out so that she could plan a holiday - chose to attack Greece, as did her allegations, which are largely propagandistic disinformation, reinforced the government's perception that it was "on the right side of history from the very first moment", in the words of Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis in the previous days.
The style and content of the Russian diplomat's statement testify to the Kremlin's strong annoyance at the firm and determined stance of the Greek government, which was not deterred and reacted with great coolness to the Russian side's provocations in Athens, which in some cases went beyond the diplomatic boundaries, before Mrs. Zaharova took the lead.
In contrast to the role of "slick neutral" played by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the boastful attitude of Ankara, which, according to government officials, "on the one hand sells... friendship and drones to Zelensky and on the other hand refuses to implement international sanctions against Putin in order to benefit economically," Athens is determined to stick to its principled foreign policy.
"We would be surprised to see Ankara, even for the first time, on the side of legitimacy," government sources said. "But we, as a country that suffers from a threatening neighbour that does not hesitate to violate legitimacy, have no choice but to be firmly and unwaveringly committed to what international law dictates."
With this in mind, Athens chose to respond to the Moscow representative within the strict diplomatic framework and without following the sharp tones of Ms. Zakharova, who obviously wanted to escalate the tension in Greek-Russian relations due to the interventions of the Russian diplomatic delegation in the Greek capital.
Papaioannou: Misinformation and disorientation
Through the mouth of its spokesman Alexandros Papaioannou, the Greek Foreign Ministry announced the following.
Greece co-decides and is bound by the decisions taken in the international organizations in which it participates, including the European Union and NATO.
The main concern of our country is to present the truth, based on confirmed and irrefutable evidence.
Any attempt, wherever it comes from, to promote false news and misinformation, which aims to mislead public opinion, is reprehensible.
The recent statements by the representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, as well as the postings of the Russian Embassy in Athens, are unfortunately unacceptable.
They are inconsistent with diplomatic practice, as well as with the historical ties that unite the peoples of Greece and Russia.
Greece would wish that historical relations would be maintained and that Russia's behaviour would move in this direction."
Zakharova: "Russophobic hysteria at... boiling point"
This was preceded by the Russian embassy in Athens posting a "comment" by Russian Foreign Ministry official spokesperson Maria Zakharova "on the anti-Russian information campaign in Greece", which detailed the following:
"We paid attention to the unprecedented campaign unleashed in Greece to discredit Russia's policy. Senior officials in Athens allow themselves to make crude accusations against our country and its leadership, literally rivaling their peers in this regard. They hypocritically talk about an "unprovoked attack" against Ukraine, for the first time since World War II, a "mass invasion", etc.
Let us recall that through the efforts, first of all, of the USA and its satellites, wars and conflicts have been rocking the world for the last decades - the NATO bombing of Yugoslavia in 1999, the operations in Iraq, Syria, Libya, Afghanistan. No one has taken responsibility for the enormous sacrifices and suffering of the peoples of these countries.
Today, the crimes of the Kiev regime, which came to power as a result of the bloody coup in 2014, remain in the shadow of the new wave of anti-Russian overblown criticisms. The fact that Crimea and Sevastopol paid for their free reunion with Russia with the total blockade and Western sanctions is glossed over.
In the besieged Donbass, as a result of the cleansing operations of Ukrainian neo-Nazis, more than 14 thousand civilians have died in the last eight years, while the Russians were advised to leave the territory of Ukraine. And what the daily shootings mean can be explained, among others, by Greek expatriates living in the territories of the Lugansk People's Republic and the Donetsk People's Republic.
The European Union preferred to silently watch the extermination of the civilian population of Donbass, becoming an accomplice in the long-standing genocide of the inhabitants of southeastern Ukraine. Now Europe, including Greece, has completely joined the ranks of the advocates of the Kiev regime, while the Russophobic hysteria cultivated by the authorities has reached a boiling point.
On this basis, deeply flawed, criminal decisions are being taken, including the sending of arms to Ukraine. In the end, the weapons will also be turned against civilians, including Greeks, whom the Ukrainian nationalist battalions are using as a human shield and who have already fallen victim to this inhumane tactic.
In the name of collective Western designs - to hurt Russia at all costs - common sense has been sacrificed. Bilateral ties are being deliberately destroyed, and Russian-Greek relations, unfortunately, are no exception. Athens actively supports the EU sanctions regime. They attribute to us alleged "energy blackmail", proclaiming the goal of a rapid decoupling from Russian natural gas, whose uninterrupted supplies for decades have been a stabilizing factor for the national energy sector.
With the collective dictum of Brussels, the Greek skies have been closed to Russian airlines. The order was given to suspend all cooperation in the field of culture, to stop the Joint Tribute Years. There are calls for a complete cessation of all cooperation. In fact, for the sake of vague and ambiguous goals, the Greek leadership is ready to zero in on our common historical heritage, which only yesterday it described as its natural advantage in cooperation with Russia.
Time will put everything in its place, it will show who was right and who - at the crucial moment - showed a lack of foresight, made the wrong choice. We believe that the eternal ties that connect the peoples of Russia and Greece will endure these trials."
Source: protothema.gr
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