ENGLISH SECTION
08/06/2025 | 13:38
PM Mitsotakis reaffirms support for St Catherine’s Monastery’s tradition and established status quo
Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, in his weekly review of the government’s work, referred to the issue of the Monastery of Saint Catherine of Mount Sinai, following the decision of the Court of Appeal of Ismailia.
As he said in the text he published on Facebook, the government’s position is clear and identical to that of the historic monastery, explaining that its long-standing tradition and the already established status quo of operation must be respected. He pointed out that the Egyptian government has explicitly assured the continuation of the monastery’s operation under the existing status, noting that President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi’s position shows Cairo’s willingness to deal with the case in a positive manner. Mitsotakis also added that the recent meeting between the Greek Foreign Minister and his Egyptian counterpart was held in the same spirit.
The Greek premier also referred to the government’s interventions for the establishment of legality and violence in sport. “15 months ago we introduced a stricter framework for dealing with violence in sports venues: mandatory operation of cameras, digital entry control for fans’ identification at stadiums, limitation of sports clubs to one per team and automated administrative sanctions for any misconduct,” Mitsotakis said, stressing that these measures have been effective.
Speaking on universities, he said they cannot become a field of violence and lawlessness. He mentioned that 48 occupations of premises had been resolved, resulting in the arrest of at least 500 individuals who had turned these institutions into either shelters for individuals wearing hoods or havens for common criminal activities.
He also spoke about the renovations that will take place after the end of the school year in 426 schools in 245 municipalities of the country under the “Marietta Giannakou” programme.
Regarding the evaluation of civil servants and services, he said that it is one of the most misunderstood concepts in Greece. “Intentionally or not, it is slandered as a punishment, while in reality it is a tool for improvement, both for the services and for the people who staff them,” he said.
Mitsotakis continued his post with the Commission’s six-monthly report, saying it is “good news from Brussels” as he explained it clearly recognises the positive course of the economy with high primary surpluses and growth twice that of the eurozone with the ability to service its debt, which is rapidly decelerating.
Mitsotakis concluded his Facebook post by talking about the acceleration of strategic investments in critical sectors aimed at the productive transformation of Greece. “In this direction, the Ministry of Development and the Interministerial Committee for Strategic Investments approved four new investments, with a budget of 780 million euros, in the energy, networks, innovation, and tourism sectors. These are the construction of a CO₂ capture unit at the TITAN plant in Kamari, Viotia; the development of a fibre optic broadband network by United Fibre to cover at least 1.6 million households in the territory by 2027; the HERMES project by Intracom Telecom; and the creation of a multi-thematic tourist complex in the municipality of Preveza. “With the new development law that we have passed, over the next two years, more than 1 billion euros will be made available to the entire Greek business community. This initiative aims at promoting sustainable growth, enhancing competitiveness, and creating an increased number of well-paid jobs,” Mitsotakis concluded.
Source: ANA – MPA
