Katrougalos: Greece will not change its position on the recognition of Kosovo

Georgios Katrougalos, professor of public law and former Greek Minister of Foreign Affairs, said that there was no change in Greece's attitude towards the recognition of Kosovo because Athens was in favor of an agreement accepted by both sides, Reporteri reports.

"As you know, Greece is one of the EU countries that do not recognize Kosovo's independence. Our position is explained by the fact that we want to avoid conflicts in the Balkans, so we want solutions that are accepted by both sides, in accordance with international law. We advocate direct dialogue between

Pristina and Belgrade. There is no change in Greece's attitude towards the recognition of Kosovo, and as we said, we wanted an acceptable agreement that solved the problems in the Balkans, as had been done with the Prespa Agreement, which had ended the conflict between Greece and the Republic of Macedonia," Katrougalos told Euronews Albania.

During the vote at the Ministerial Committee of the Council of Europe on Kosovo's membership in that organization, Greece abstained.

Thirty-three countries voted for this decision, seven were against and five abstained.

The countries that voted against Kosovo's membership are Spain, Romania, Cyprus, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Serbia, and Hungary, which is the biggest surprise, given that it recognizes Kosovo's independence.

Greece, Slovakia, Ukraine, and Bosnia abstained, while Armenia did not vote at all.