Dendias welcomes Egypt’s demarcation of western maritime borders
Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias has welcomed Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi’s decree delimiting the western maritime borders of Egypt.
“Greece and Egypt have a continuous and strong coordination on issues related to stability and security in the Eastern Mediterranean,” Dendias said, after a meeting with his North Macedonia counterpart, Bujar Osmani, in Athens.
Dendias described Greece’s August 2020 deal with Egypt on both countries’ exclusive economic zones as “an exemplary agreement concluded in the framework of the international law and the Law of the Sea.”
It “contributes to stability and security in our region … contrary to the null and void memoranda of understanding that have been signed between the Tripoli administration and Turkey,” he added.
Turning to North Macedonia, Dendias said “Greece is your closest partner and ally in the region, without any hidden agendas.”
He underlined that Greece believes future of North Macedonia “and the entire Western Balkans region is within the European Union.”
“We also advocate that we cannot allow third parties, driven by revisionist aspirations, to take advantage of integration fatigue in the Western Balkans.”
Bujar noted that the “Prespa Agreement is the basis for further cooperation, as well as for further strengthening of mutual relations.”
He said that since the signing of the agreement in 2018, “the total trade between the two countries has increased by 100%, from 853 million euros to in excess of 1.6 billion euros this year.”
