The operation to free the Greek consul of Mariupol, Manolis Androulakis, is currently taking place without any problems. 

As Minister of Foreign Affairs, Nikos Dendias, announced in Parliament, the convoy is in Berdyansk on its way to Zaporizhia, referring to the government’s diplomatic initiatives aimed at protecting Greek expatriates in Ukraine.

In the context of briefing the Parliamentary Committee on Foreign Affairs and Defence, the Minister of Foreign Affairs referred to the position of the convoy with the Greek consul in Mariupol, Manolis Androulakis, saying that the latter was in the city of Berdyansk on his way to Zaporizhia.

“Apart from the wishes sent by all of us who accompany him, I would like to say that his presence in Mariupol these days in the effort to protect and help our expatriates, as well as the presence of Ambassador Frangiskos Kostellenos in Mariupol and Consul General Dimitris Dohtsis in Odesa, honor our homeland. I once again give my warmest congratulations and thank them on behalf of us all,” he said, praising the fact that he chose to stay in Mariupol until the end, although he had been asked in the previous mission if it would be better for him to leave.

“I had visited Odesa and Mariupol before the war, I tried to declare the presence of the Greek community and to protect it as much as possible. Our community has mourned and is still mourning victims, we will have the exact number of casualties after the end of the tragedy,” Nikos Dendias stated and underlined that Greece’s position in the war in Ukraine is based on 3 principles: humanitarian law, the principle of territorial integrity of states and coexistence with allies and partners in NATO and the EU.

Also read: Mariupol | Chechens in battle – “Almighty Allah” – VIDEO

Today, Wednesday, Moscow-Kyiv talks on peace in Ukraine continue. A senior Ukrainian official said talks with Russia to end the war were very difficult, but stressed that there was certainly room for compromise.

We'll continue tomorrow. A very difficult and viscous negotiation process. There are fundamental contradictions. But there is certainly room for compromise. During the break, work in subgroups will be continued…

— Михайло Подоляк (@Podolyak_M) March 15, 2022

Mikhail Pontolyak, an adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, wrote in a Twitter post that there were substantial disagreements between the two sides.

Following the new bombings with civilian casualties in Kyiv, the mayor of the Ukrainian capital, Vitali Klitschko, imposed a 36-hour lockdown on Tuesday night due to “dangerous and difficult times” for its residents. Meanwhile, the airport in the city of Dnipro in eastern Ukraine suffered “massive damage” after being bombed twice overnight.

About 300 civilians from Mariupol managed to reach Zaporizhia, while at noon on Tuesday another 200 vehicles with civilians left the besieged city of southern Ukraine. The evacuation of civilians from Sumi is also underway.

In the diplomatic arena, Moscow retaliated by imposing sanctions on US President Joe Biden and other senior US officials. At the same time, an extraordinary NATO Summit is convened by Jens Stoltenberg for March 24. US President Joe Biden will also attend the summit of the 27 leaders of the European Union member-states in Brussels on the same day.

With information from: CNN Greece, euronews.com

Also read: Mitsotakis to Zelensky | Greece’s full support – Discussion on Ukrainian refugees and Greek expatriates