The Greek Foreign Minister, Nikos Dendias, has this week visited the Ukrainian city of Odessa, promising that Greece and its government is “making every effort to protect on the one hand Odessa itself, but also the elements of our own cultural presence … from the consequences of the war.”
In his statement to journalists during his visit on Tuesday, the Minister also noted that he had met with the city’s mayor, Gennadiy Trukhanov, and discussed their joint effort to make the historic centre of Odessa a cultural monument protected by UNESCO.
Meeting with #Odessa Mayor Gennadiy Trukhanov and visit to the emblematic Opera building, inaugurated during Maraslis’ mayorship. Talks on the centuries-old presence of the Greek Diaspora in #Odessa, a city with a great significance for Greece. (1/2) pic.twitter.com/us6rkUJOm6
— Nikos Dendias (@NikosDendias) July 12, 2022
The minister said it would create “a cultural shield that will protect this historic centre from the repercussions of the war,” before going on to describe the city’s significance to Greece.
“This is a centre that is linked to Greece, chiefly because this is where the Greek Revolution began. The building that started the Greek Revolution is located here, it is owned by the Greek State,” Dendias said.
Dendias is set to sign an agreement with the Odessa State Archives, in which the Greek ministry will agree to jointly finance efforts to digitalise archives concerning the Greek presence in the city.
