Geneva, 16 October 2024. Meeting of the IAO Secretary General with the Secretary General of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU)
In the framework of the 149th General Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) at its headquarters in Geneva, the Secretary General of the Interparliamentary Assembly on Orthodoxy (IAO), Member of the Hellenic Parliament, Dr. Maximos Charakopoulos, held a meeting with the Secretary General of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) Mr. Martin Chungong. The meeting was also attended by the IAO Advisor Dr. Kostas Mygdalis, and on behalf of the IPU, the Advisor for Interreligious Dialogue, Mrs. Sarah Markiewicz.
The IAO Secretary General during the meeting signed the Letter of Endorsement of the IAO to the “Common Principles for Support to Parliaments”.
It is noted that the IPU is a global organization of Parliaments, founded in 1889 and has 179 country-members. The IAO officially participates in the works of the IPU with observer status.
During the meeting, the IAO Secretary General emphasized: “We consider that the Common Principles for Support to Parliaments is not just a text that sets global standards for international collaboration in the field of inter-parliamentary relations. It is a useful instrument that provides clear guidelines for building strong national parliaments, protecting parliamentarism from external threats and strengthening parliamentary institutions so that they can genuinely express the citizens they represent.” In addition, addressing the IPU Secretary General, he underlined that “we share the same concerns as the IPU about the future of the world and the role of religions in modern societies. We observe with particular interest the positions expressed by the IPU on the significance of interfaith and intercultural dialogue, while we participated in the Parliamentary Conference on Interfaith Dialogue that you organized in Marrakesh. A similar activity was undertaken by the IAO, with the organization of an International Political Conference in Thessaloniki, last May, and the signing of an Appeal to the European Institutions for the inclusion of references to Christian values in EU texts.
Unfortunately, in the current dramatic situation, these initiatives are not only timely but also imperative. The wars in Ukraine as well as in the Middle East require collaboration for the prevalence of peace. The initiatives of our inter-parliamentary institutions serve this goal, mutual understanding and conciliation among the peoples for the good of all humanity”.
For his part, the IPU Secretary General underlined, inter-alia, that the institution he leads has many common elements, common values and principles, in terms of dialogue and peace, with the IAO. Moreover, he stated, that he was very pleased with the collaboration up to date, and expressed the wish to strengthen it further because “the world is going through an enormous crisis, which is based on extremist elements and ideologies”.
After the meeting, Mr. Martin Chungong posted on his personal account on “X” a photo with the IAO Secretary General, accompanied by the caption “The IAO just signed the Common Principles of the IPU. As we celebrate the 10-year anniversary of the Principles of this Assembly, I thank the Secretary General Maximos Charakopoulos for their support”.
On the sidelines of the IPU General Assembly, the IAO Secretary General also had a meeting with the IPU Director of the Department of Member Parliaments and External Relations, Ambassador Ms. Anda Filip.
