For “productive discussions” during which the two sides exposed their positions on the Monastery of Saint Catherine of Sinai, officials from the Greek delegation have spoken after the meeting for the future of the monastery in Cairo, giving the measure of different approaches between Greece and Egypt.
“We explained the political dimension and with all respect for Egyptian justice we said that the issues of international law in terms of world heritage should also be taken into account and demanded the status of the historical monastery,” they said by Greek representatives. He added that the Egyptians analyzed the complex legal aspects of the case. The two sides reportedly agreed that there was further technical analysis in the next few days to make a clear proposal on how the case would go ahead.
In any case, the consultations reaffirmed the intention and the will, both on the part of President Sisi and the Egyptian government, to continue unhindered and protected the Greek Orthodox character. The ownership status is reported to be discussed at a next stage.
For its part, the Greek delegation called on the Egyptians to function in the direction of maintaining the status quo and the continuity of the monastery.
After completing the discussions, Foreign Minister George Gerapetritis made the following statement:
Our relationship with Egypt is deep and has developed strategic characteristics.
We discussed today with the Egyptian Foreign Minister the issues related to the Monastery of St. Catherine of Mount Sinai. We have agreed immediately to work in the direction of securing the rights of the monastery, as well as its legal form and personality.
The intention of Egypt and Greece is to proceed on the basis of the centuries -long tradition and the already designed status of an emblematic monastery for its Greek -Orthodox worship.