The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mrs Anita Demetriou, received today members of the Inter-Parliamentary Assembly of Orthodoxy from fourteen countries, who are participating in the work of the Expanded Meeting of the International Secretariat, the Chairpersons and Rapporteurs of the Committees of the IOA hosted by the House of Representatives in Limassol.
Welcoming the participants, Mrs Demetriou expressed her appreciation for the work carried out by the Organisation and underlined the readiness of the House of Representatives and herself personally to further support the initiatives and actions undertaken by the IOA. The House of Representatives, Ms Demetriou stressed, is a founding member of the IOA and remains an institutional supporter and ally of the Assembly's initiatives, within the framework of parliamentary diplomacy, at every level.
The President of the Parliament expressed her sincere thanks for the multifaceted support of the IOA, on a principled basis, regarding the Cyprus problem and its individual aspects, such as the destruction of cultural heritage, as a consequence of the invasion and ongoing occupation by Turkey of part of the territory of the Republic of Cyprus.
The Secretary General of the IOA Mr. Maximos Charakopoulos expressed his sincere thanks to the Speaker of the Parliament for the excellent hosting of this event and for supporting the work of the Assembly. The cooperation with the members of the Cypriot delegation, Mr. Charakopoulos stressed, remains strong, aiming at unity, based on the common principles and values that unite the Members of the Assembly.
On behalf of the members of the Cypriot delegation, Mr. Panicos Leonidou noted that a fruitful dialogue on key issues such as the Cyprus problem, as well as the alteration of the character of religious monuments and churches is taking place in the IUCN, first and foremost the issue of the conversion of Hagia Sophia into a mosque, an issue to which, as he pointed out, a special event will be dedicated tomorrow in the Holy Metropolis of Limassol.
(The text as sent by the House of Representatives)
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