On October 25, 2022, the Secretary General of the Interparliamentary Assembly on Orthodoxy (I.A.O.), Member of the Hellenic Parliament, Dr. Maximos Charakopoulos, held important contacts with high-level officials of the European Commission and the European Parliament in Brussels.
Specifically, the head of the I.A.O. held a meeting with the Vice-President of the European Commission, Commissioner for the Protection of the European Way of Life, Mr. Margaritis Schinas, during which they discussed issues about the protection of places of worship, religious freedoms and inter-religious dialogue. The I.A.O. Secretary General underlined, “the significance of highlighting the issue of Hagia Sophia in the heart of Europe, in the decision-making center of the EU, Brussels, as a strong message of condemnation of Turkish arbitrariness”. Mr. Schinas, expressed his support to the work carried out by the I.A.O. He also briefed the IAO Members on the initiative he undertook together with his fellow Commissioner, Mrs. Mariya Ivanova Gabriel, from Bulgaria – who also has responsibility duties related to cultural issues – to forward a letter addressed to the leadership of the Turkish Ministry of Culture, expressing their concern on Hagia Sophia, a monument of world cultural heritage.
The I.A.O. Secretary General offered Mr. Schinas, a copy of the Greek version of the Volume “Hagia Sophia: The Churches of the Wisdom of God around the world”. The Alternate Secretary General Dr. Andreas Michailidis, the I.A.O. Treasurer Mr. Stavros Keletsis and the I.A.O. advisor Dr. Kostas Mygdalis participated at the meeting as well.
Subsequently, the head of the I.A.O., accompanied by the Advisor Dr. Kostas Mygdalis had a meeting with the Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth, Mrs. Mariya Ivanova Gabriel, whom they also informed about the initiative of publishing the Volume on Hagia Sophia Churches. Referring to the conversion of Hagia Sophia in Istanbul (Constantinople) into a mosque, he pointed out the severe damage caused by the daily attendance of thousands of visitors, a fact also denounced by Turkish archaeologists. In addition, he informed the Commissioner that the Volume has also been translated into the Bulgarian language; among the 37 churches included in the publication, there are two historical churches located in Bulgaria, in Mesembria and Sofia. The I.A.O. Secretary General presented a copy of the Volume to the Commissioner from Bulgaria and invited her to the presentation to be organized, both in the European Parliament premises, as well as in Sofia. Mrs. Mariya Ivanova Gabriel thanked for the briefing and commended “the IAO’s valuable work to promote the religious and cultural European heritage. We thank you for this inspiring commemorative publication.”
In addition, the Secretary General accompanied by the Alternate Secretary General Dr. Andreas Michailidis, the I.A.O. Treasurer Mr. Stavros Keletsis and the I.A.O. advisors Dr. Kostas Mygdalis and Mr. Alexandr Fomenko visited the headquarters of the Commission of the Episcopal Conferences of the EU (COMECE). The IAO delegation had a meeting with the Secretary General of the (COMECE), Roman Catholic priest Fr. Manuel Barrios Prieto, the COMECE Advisor for European Affairs Mr. Marek Misak, as well as the Secretary General of the Conference of European Churches (CEC) Dr Jørgen Skov Sørensen and the CEC Executive Secretary Mrs Katerina Pekridou. During the meeting, the COMECE S.G. welcomed the I.A.O. delegation and expressed his willingness to cooperate with the institution of Orthodox deputies. The I.A.O. Secretary General emphasized that “we share the concern about the course of Europe”, while he focused his intervention “on the EU’s neglect of recognizing the Christian religion and tradition as a fundamental element of the European identity”.
During his visit at the EU headquarters, the I.A.O. Secretary General, also had a meeting with the vice-president of the European People’s Party (EPP), Mr. Vangelis Meimarakis, initiating the procedures for the realization, within the European Parliament, of the photo exhibition of the I.A.O. international Competition on Hagia Sophia Churches, as well as the presentation of the relative Volume. The I.A.O. treasurer Mr. Stavros Keletsis participated at the meeting as well. During the meeting, Mr. Meimarakis expressed his willingness, in his institutional capacity, to contribute to the implementation on the project for Hagia Sophia within the European Parliament.
On the sidelines of these meetings at the European Parliament, the Alternate Secretary General Dr. Andreas Michailidis accompanied by the Advisor Dr. Kostas Mygdalis held a meeting with the MEPs of the European People’s Party Mr. Lefteris Christoforou and Lukas Mandl. They discussed, among other things, the possibility of presenting the Volume on Hagia Sophia Churches in Brussels, as well as the assessment of the Future of Europe, in the wake of the adoption of the Final Report of the Conference on the Future of Europe.
Finally, they held a meeting with representatives of the Focolare Movement and “Together for Europe” organization. On behalf of the Focolare Movement, Ms. Maria Rosa Logozzo, Ms. Victoria Letizia Bakacsi, Ms. Elena Possia and Ms. Anny Hesius participated, while the Organization “Together for Europe” was represented by Ms. Emanuela Giorgi, Ms. Anne Plancke and Mr. Marcelo Pardo. During the meeting, they discussed motivating proposals regarding joint initiatives for the joint celebration of Easter for all Christians in the year 2025.
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