In Karyes he will be welcomed by Greek President Prokopis Pavlopoulos, Protos of Mount Athos Paulos of the Holy Mountain and members of the Holy Kinot.
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“If yesterday in those areas of Romania people simply did not know what it means to be in the cross-hairs, then today we will be forced to carry out certain measures to ensure our security”, Putin said Friday.
The Russian leader also touched on relations with Turkey, which have been toxic since the Turkish military shot down a Russian fighter jet near the Syrian-Turkish border last November. Russia’s president Vladimir Putin is due in financially struggling Greece F…
Russian President Vladimir Putin says he will not entertain any discussions about the status of Crimea, the Ukrainian region which Moscow annexed.
Noting the 1,000 years since Russian presence at the northeastern Greek peninsula, Putin classified Mount Athos a “unique center of Orthodoxy and Christianity” that preserved and expanded its spiritual traditions and shared values.
Earlier this month, the USA program was declared operational at a site in Romania, drawing an angry reaction from Russian Federation. In an article in Kathimerini daily on Thursday, Mr. Putin said Russian Federation was interested in tenders involving Greek rail assets and the port of Thessaloniki, a major gateway into the Balkans. “To do this, we have to fight and defeat terrorists, and to do this, we all have to fight this threat together”, Putin concluded. “It can easily be modified to have an aggressive capability”, he said.
Putin has made only a handful of visits to European Union countries since sanctions were imposed on Moscow two years ago in response to the Ukraine crisis and Russia’s annexation of Crimea following an internationally disputed referendum. This was a historical decision taken by the people that live in Crimea.
According to Putin, Russia highly valued the past level of relations with Tukrey.
He also urged Europe to cooperate with Russian Federation, and to move away from what he branded a futile cycle of sanctions and militarisation.
Russian Federation is one of Greece’s main trading partners, but business has been hit by the sanctions and a drop in commodity prices.
“But we do not see it yet”, he said speaking at the press conference by results of their negotiations with Greek Prime Alexis Tsipras.
He said: “How can that not create a threat for us?”
Mount Athos is an enclave of 20 monasteries.
Greek opposition figures were pleased with Putin’s decision to meet opposition leader Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Greek tourist officials said Putin’s visit would help encourage more Russians to visit Greece.
(AP Photo/Darko Bandic). An Orthodox monk walks down the steps as Greek police provide security at a palace in Karyes, the capital of Mount Athos, Greece, Friday, May 27, 2016.
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“We’re here to support the Russian gay community”. “We haven’t forgotten them”.
