An inauguration ceremony at the temple of Olympian Zeus took place on Wednesday to celebrate the occasion of Greece assuming the chairmanship of the Council of Europe.
Greece's President Katerina Sakellaropoulou and Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis presided over the event which commenced with a greeting from the Alternate Minister of Foreign Affairs, Miltiadis Varvitsiotis, in his capacity as Chair of the Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers.
The event is part of a rich programme of cultural activities planned within the framework of the six-month long Greek Chairmanship, due to take place in Greece and abroad. These events aim to highlight the cultural dimension of the Greek Chairmanship, which focuses on the protection of human rights, the rule of law and democracy in times of the pandemic.
The Temple of Olympian Zeus was chosen for this event, as it symbolises the timeless sacred locus of all human societies to preserve human dignity and human freedoms, even in times of environmental and health challenges – from the Athens outbreak of classical times to today’s Covid-19 pandemic. The artistic part of the event included a classical music programme featuring distinguished Greek performers and was live-streamed from the official website and the social media of the Greek Chairmanship of the Council of Europe.