LONDON – Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias is visiting London on Monday.

During his visit to London, he is expected to hold talks with British Minister of State at the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office, Chris Heaton-Harris.

According to diplomatic sources, developments in Ukraine, the Western Balkans, the Eastern Mediterranean will dominate the agenda. They will also discuss the Cyprus issue and issues concerning the implementation of the “Memorandum of Understanding on the Strategic Bilateral Framework”, signed by Greece and the United Kingdom last October.

This is a historic agreement, signed after the United Kingdom’s exit from the EU and aims to strengthen the ties between the two countries, covering a wide range of issues such as defence, trade, tourism, shipping and more generally, what interests the relations between the two states.

During his stay in the British capital, he will also have meetings with the Ambassador of the Bahamas and the Ambassador of Brunei to the United Kingdom, with parallel accreditation in Greece.

According to the same sources, the aim of the meeting of the Greek minister is to promote the Greek candidacy for election as a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council for the period 2025-26.

Already, as has been announced, 97 countries have pledged in writing that they will support the Greek candidacy. This is a number that represents 50 pct of the member-states of the United Nations. The elections will take place in the fall of 2024.

Dendias’s visit to London is the third in a few months, which underlines the special importance that Greece attaches to strengthening ties with the United Kingdom after its departure from the European Union, as a senior diplomatic source told the Athens-Macedonian News Agency (ANA).