The spring session of the International Secretariat of the Inter-Parliamentary Assembly on Orthodoxy (IAO), held in Tbilisi, Georgia, concluded on Monday, with the participation members of the Cypriot delegation to the IAO, Elias Myrianthous and Alekos Tryfonides.
According to a House statement, the session, which began with a minute of silence in memory of the recently deceased Patriarch of Georgia, Ilia II, was addressed by the Speaker of the Parliament of Georgia, Shalva Papuashvili, who emphasized that it is a great honour for Georgia to host the proceedings of the International Secretariat of the IAO and that its Parliament has consistently and actively participated in the Assembly’s activities since its establishment.
It is noted that Papuashvili emphasized the importance of promoting Christian values in modern Europe and beyond, and provided information regarding the celebrations to be held this coming October marking the 1,700th anniversary of the Christianization of the Georgian people, while the IAO Secretary General, Maximos Charakopoulos, noted that Georgia is a timeless bastion of Orthodoxy that has played a catalytic role in shaping the identity of its people.
It is added that during the proceedings of the meeting, issues concerning the functioning and planning of the Assembly’s upcoming activities were discussed, among other topics. In his remarks, Myrianthous provided an overview of the recent activities in which he participated as a member of IAO delegations, while Tryfonides raised the issue of the desecration of Christian churches and monuments in Turkish-occupied Cyprus.
It is further stated that, as part of the proceedings, a delegation of participating parliamentarians, including Myrianthous, was received by the President of Georgia, Mikheil Kavelashvili, who emphasized the need to defend traditional values in the modern world, while the Secretary General of the IOC emphasized that Orthodoxy is an integral part of Georgia’s national identity and that the country should participate in shaping the new Europe.
During their stay in Tbilisi, the Cypriot MPs visited the Federation of Greek Communities of Georgia, where they were briefed by its President, Eugenia Kotanidi, about the activities of the 18 Greek associations in the country, with particular emphasis on Greek language education and the activities of Greek youth, which, as was emphasized, represent the hope for the continued presence of Hellenism in the country, while the participating MPs also attended a memorial service at the tomb of the late Patriarch of Georgia, Ilia II, the statement concludes.