Minister of Foreign Affairs Dendias meets Patriarch Irinej and his Serbian counterpart (upd)

LAST UPDATE: 18:53

Minister of Foreign Affairs Nikos Dendias had a meeting in Belgrade with Serbian Patriarch Irinej.

During his visit to the Serbian capital, Minister Dendias met with Patriarch Irenej, with whom he discussed the role of Orthodoxy in the Balkans and globally, according to a Minister’s tweet.

The meeting of the two men took place in a cordial atmosphere, while Balkan ecclesiastical issues were at the center of their interest.

The Greek Foreign Minister is in Belgrade at the invitation of his Serbian counterpart, Ivica Dacic.

Relations between Greece and Serbia and the latter’s prospects for EU accession were the focus of talks held on Thursday by Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias and his counterpart Ivica Dacic.

During a press conference Dendias said that the meeting of the Greece-Serbia High Level Collaboration Council scheduled in Athens on December 11 will “provide a unique opportunity to inaugurate a new start to bilateral relations and strenghthen our multilevel collaboration.”

The two Foreign ministers also agreed to establish a tripartite regional collaboration with Cyprus.

Dendias asserted Greece will continue to strongly support Serbia’s efforts to become an EU member. “For us it is clear that Serbia belongs to the European family, as do the rest of the western Balkan countries, and we are prepared to help our neighbors,” he said, while Dacic thanked Greece for refusing to recognize Kosovo as an independent state.

Dendias also met with Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and their talks focused on the December council meeting.

The Greek Foreign minister later laid a wreath at the statue of Greek revolutionary hero Rigas Feraios at Nebojsa Tower in Belgrade, where he was killed during the rule of the Ottoman Empire.

Dendias will wrap up his one-day visit after meeting with Serbian Patriarch Irinej (Irineos) and later with Greek businessmen active in Serbia.