Focus on Greece at the World Council of Churches

Deputy Foreign Minister Ioannis Amanatidis met in Geneva today, Wednesday, 2 March, with the Deputy Secretary General of the World Council of Churches (WCC), Georgios Laimopoulos, as well as with Peter Prove, Director for International Relations, and Michele Nseir, programme executive for the WCC's special focus on the Middle East, with whom he discussed the refugee crisis, WCC initiatives on the issue, and the potential for cooperation with agencies in Greece.

Following the meeting, Mr. Amanatidis stated:

“At the World Council of Churches, we had an in-depth discussion of developments in the refugee crisis in Greece, as well as of the initiatives the WCC has taken regarding this crisis. At this point, all of the international players and humanitarian organizations agree that any approach or solution must be comprehensive and cover all of the aspects of the issue, covering the range of needs of the refugees, from healthcare to repatriation, when the latter can be carried out in complete safety. I asked for there to be cooperation in this direction with both the Greek government and Church agencies in Greece.”

Mr. Laimopoulos praised the solidarity shown by the Greek government and Greek society in general in the management of the migration and refugee crisis and made a commitment to “mobilize and raise awareness on the issue” through the WCC’s strong network of contacts.

The WCC’s Director for International Relations, Peter Prove, underscored that “Greece is at the epicenter of WCC interest,” referring to priority countries: Greece, as the transit country for migrant/refugee flows, and Germany and Sweden, as destination countries for migration and refugee flows.

March 2, 2016