Log in
A+ A A-

German ambassador: Ratification of the Prespa Agreement is 'a victory for democracy'

Featured German ambassador: Ratification of the Prespa Agreement is 'a victory for democracy'

The ratification of the Prespa Agreement is "a victory for democracy", the Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany to Greece, Jens Ploetner, said on Tuesday in an interview with the AMNA agency.

The German ambassador said that it is a "good" deal, adding that Greece and the wider Balkan region will benefit. He also praised the prime ministers on both sides for the courage they have demonstrated in resolving this long-standing dispute.
"On the part of the German government, it is clear that the two prime ministers acted with a lot of courage, they acted just like a state leader," the German ambassador said, stressing that the two men's initiatives deserve "our highest recognition".
Referring to the reactions to the Prespa Agreement, Ploetner noted that Germany is aware that it is an emotional issue for many Greeks, but expressed his hope and conviction that soon everyone will understand that it is a good deal, not only for Greece's neighbouring country but also for Greece itself - especially northern Greece - and the whole of Europe.
"Although it was a difficult decision, I think it was, however, a brave and correct decision and I am absolutely convinced that in a few years there will even be a majority in Greek public opinion supporting the same view," the German ambassador noted.
On the occasion of his presence in Thessaloniki on Sunday, where he was the main speaker at an event marking the Day of Remembrance of Jewish Martyrs and Heroes of the Holocaust, which took place in the city's port, the German Ambassador sent the message "Never Again", stressing that to make this a reality "we must remember the crimes caused by the Germans and in the name of Germany, not only here in Greece but also throughout Europe."
"It is important to tell the Greeks, and especially the Jewish Greeks, that Germany assumes moral responsibility for these acts, a responsibility that does not end and is transferred from generation to generation. And when we say "never again", we must constantly consider what the present generation has a duty to do, in order to ensure that such acts are not repeated. We must be constantly vigilant when we find that individuals and minorities are stigmatised for a supposedly superior ideal. In these cases, we must sound the alarm," he underlined.
He also expressed his disappointment for the vandalism of the Jewish cemetery monument at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, stressing that it was an act that "shows that the virus of hate and anti-Semitism in Europe still exists."