Greek Prime Minister To Visit Russia To Enhance Bilateral Ties - Foreign Ministry

ATHENS (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 15th December, 2019) Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis will pay a visit to Russia to boost bilateral relations, Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias said on Sunday during the parliamentary discussions on the country's 2020 budget.

"As for Russia, as a part of the intensification of our ties, I visited Moscow, met with [Russian Foreign Minister Sergey] Lavrov. He will pay a visit to Athens. The [Greek] prime minister will visit Moscow," Dendias said without specifying the visit's time line.

On November 6, Dendias held talks with Lavrov during his working visit to Moscow. Following the meeting, the Russian minister said that Russia confirmed the Greek prime minister's invitation to the country to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II.

Lavrov also stated that he would visit Athens at the invitation of Mitsotakis.

Following the talks, Greece's Foreign Ministry also announced that Dendias invited Lavrov and Russian President Vladimir Putin to visit the country in 2021 to celebrate the 200th anniversary since the start of the national liberation struggle.

In 2021, Greece will mark the 200th anniversary of the revolution against the Ottoman rule. In early November, Dendias said in an interview with Sputnik that Athens recognized the crucial role of Russia and other great powers of that time in the revolution's success. He also stressed the role of the Greek diaspora in Russia during their struggle for independence.