ATHENS – Greek President Katerina Sakellaropoulou conveyed the support of the Greek people to the diaspora communities of Ukraine, in a Facebook message on Wednesday.

“These days, when the threat of war overshadows Ukraine, our thoughts are with the Greek communities of the Azov region – all those cities and villages where the Greek language is still heard, the schools holding classes under the Greek flag, and the diaspora members of every age who keep their ties with their Greek roots alive in their hearts,” she said.

Sakellaropoulou referred to the Greek language children are learning through games and older students through the Mariupol State University’s Department of Greek Philology and Translation, and said, “I am very moved when I think of the resilience of the Greek spirit in the region, from the Byzantine era to the present.” In Greece, she said, “we honor their resilience, we stand by them, and we support them.”