Greek prime minister: Mutual uderstanding reached on Sinai Monastery issue

The Monastery of Saint Catherine on Mount Sinai. Photo: reuters.com

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis announced that a preliminary mutual understanding has been reached with Egypt regarding the Monastery of Saint Catherine the Great Martyr on Mount Sinai. The head of government made this statement during his address to parliament on foreign policy matters, Reuters reports.

The prime minister noted that in recent times, speculation and misinformation have circulated around the Monastery of Saint Catherine. According to him, “this issue, unfortunately, has become the subject of cheap exploitation by those who ignore even the most basic facts and realities.” Mitsotakis emphasized that the question of the monastery’s legal status is not new and has a centuries-long history.

“In light of recent developments, intensive consultations have begun between the two foreign ministers aimed at resolving this long-standing issue,” the prime minister said. “I can now inform parliament that a preliminary mutual understanding has been reached between the parties.”

The prime minister clarified that the final decision rests with the Sinai Brotherhood, while the monastery’s status remains forever protected and unchanged. “Any alteration of the monastery or other places of worship is strictly prohibited, and measures have been taken to ensure the permanent presence of the monks,” Mitsotakis stressed.

He added that the agreement reached guarantees the preservation of Saint Catherine’s Monastery as one of the spiritual centers of Orthodoxy and reaffirms the active role of the Greek state in safeguarding its historical and religious significance.

Earlier this year, an Egyptian court ruled that the monks must vacate several plots of land and places of worship that they had used for centuries, on the grounds that they had been unlawfully seized.

However, according to Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and diplomatic sources, following negotiations, Greece and Egypt concluded an out-of-court agreement to be signed by the monastery’s leadership and the Egyptian authorities.

As the UOJ previously reported, the brotherhood of Saint Catherine’s Monastery on Sinai elected Archimandrite Simeon (Papadopoulos) as its new abbot and Archbishop of Sinai, Pharan, and Raitho.

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