Mitsotakis in Sinai: Greece Mends Rift with Egypt, Signals Progress on St. Catherine’s Monastery

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis attended the enthronement of the new Abbot of St. Catherine’s Monastery and Archbishop of Sinai, Damianos Symeon, on Thursday, in a move widely seen as closing a diplomatic rift with Cairo and advancing negotiations over the historic site’s future.

Speaking at the ceremony, Mitsotakis described preserving the monastery’s Greek Orthodox and liturgical character as “a national duty and rightful obligation,” adding that Athens and Cairo are “very close” to a final agreement. “The efforts of the Greek and Egyptian states have already paved the way for the monastery’s character to remain unchanged,” he said.

The event marked the end of a turbulent chapter for the monastic community, triggered by a ruling from Egypt’s Ismailia Court of Appeal earlier this year, which transferred significant portions of the monastery’s land – both within and outside its walls – to the Egyptian state. The decision had strained Athens-Cairo relations to near-diplomatic crisis levels, despite the two nations’ strategic alignment in the Eastern Mediterranean.

A Symbol of Faith and Friendship

Founded in the 6th century at the foot of Mount Sinai, St. Catherine’s is the world’s oldest continuously inhabited Christian monastery and a UNESCO World Heritage site. Mitsotakis hailed it as “a bastion of Orthodoxy, a beacon of spiritual virtue, and a living bridge of friendship between Greece and Egypt.”

The new abbot, Symeon, was elected unanimously by the monastery’s 20 monks (with his own vote left blank, per tradition) and ordained just two weeks ago in Jerusalem. A monk since the 1980s, he is regarded as a calm and moderate figure capable of restoring unity within the community.

Sources close to the negotiations confirm “significant progress” but caution that “no agreement exists until signatures are in place.” The court’s land ruling is considered irreversible, yet both sides are working to secure the monastery’s operational autonomy and religious identity.

Key Issues Ahead

Among the outstanding questions:
- Granting Egyptian citizenship to Abbot Symeon (a procedural step expected soon).
- Potential citizenship or long-term residency for monks, who currently renew annual permits.
- Renewal of the ageing monastic community to ensure its long-term vitality.

Patriarch Theophilos III of Jerusalem, also present, urged Egyptian and Greek officials to “safeguard the monastery’s integrity and status quo.”

**Broader Strategic Ties**

Greece and Egypt remain close partners, bound by a 2020 Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) delimitation agreement that challenged Turkey’s controversial maritime deal with Libya. The two nations coordinate on Libya, energy, and migration, while Athens advocates for stronger Cairo-Brussels ties.

Mitsotakis’ presence in Sinai – the first by a Greek premier in years – sent a clear message: Greece will remain actively engaged in the monastery’s fate, while prioritising its strategic partnership with Egypt.

As one diplomatic source noted: “This is not just about land. It’s about preserving a 1,500-year-old symbol of Hellenic and Christian heritage in the heart of the Arab world.”

(Source: To Vima)