RIYADH , 25 August — The Greek government has donated a plot of land in the capital city of Athens for the construction of an integrated mosque and Islamic Cultural Center, which will mainly be funded by Saudi Arabia together with some other Arab and Islamic countries. This will be the largest Islamic center and the first of its kind to be built in that European country, which is home for about half a million Muslims.
George Nicolaidis, Greek ambassador, said here yesterday that the plan to build the Islamic Cultural Center and mosque is currently under discussion between the Greek authorities and the ambassadors of Arab and Muslim countries. Nicolaidis added that this project is to be completed before the 2004 Olympic Games and will cater to the needs of a growing number of Muslim immigrants, who have adopted Greece as their home.
“We have many Muslim immigrants from countries like Albania, Egypt and Nigeria besides Arab and Islamic countries,” said the diplomat, while adding that a considerable number of Palestinians are working and studying at different universities in Greece, many of them with scholarships by the Greek state.
Greece, he noted, has always been supporting the Palestinian cause and during the Intifada, it offered hospitalization in Athens for quite a few wounded Palestinians. The northern part of Greece, in Thrace, there is a compact population of about 130,000 Muslims with several mosques, said the diplomat, while referring to the presence of Islam in the country.
Referring to the “excellent” relations between Saudi Arabia and Greece, Ambassador Nicolaidis said that “recently, talks were held in Jeddah between Dr. Nizar Obaid Madani, assistant foreign minister, and George Savvaidis, secretary-general at the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs, during which many issues of bilateral and international interests were discussed at large.”
He pointed out that Crown Prince Abdullah, deputy premier and commander of the National Guard, has been invited by Greek Prime Minister Costas Simitis to visit Athens. The Greek side is waiting for the response. “Also, Prince Saud Al-Faisal, foreign minister, has invited his Greek counterpart George Papandreou to visit Saudi Arabia. The two sides will be shortly working on a convenient date for the visit,” he said.
Nicolaidis also said that Greece will present a draft proposal for a cultural agreement to the Saudi government soon. It will boost cooperation in the cultural field between the two countries.
Furthermore, the diplomat said that an investment protection agreement, which is at the final stage of negotiations, will be signed shortly, to be followed by another agreement on the avoidance of double taxation. For both agreements, the green signal was given by the last Saudi-Greek Joint Ministerial Commission co-chaired by Saudi Commerce Minister Osama Faqeeh.
On the economic front, the relations between the Kingdom and Greece have been growing progressively over the years, he observed. “In trade, 95 percent of Saudi exports to Greece constitute oil and petrochemicals,” said Ambassador Nicolaidis, and he added that the two-way trade has been in the region of $500-600 million annually.
He said Saudi Arabia has emerged to be the largest oil supplier to Greece, especially after Saudi Aramco’s acquisition of a 50 percent stake in the Greek Motor Oil refinery.
The economic relations are expected to be enhanced further after a scheduled visit of a Greek business mission to Saudi Arabia, a visit that was decided following an exploratory mission of the Greek Chamber of Commerce early this year.
Greece can be a potential business partner of Riyadh, as the former has become the strategic link to the sizable markets of the Balkans, the Black Sea, Eastern Europe, and the East Mediterranean regions, he said. It will also be a better investment destination for businessmen because the Greek economy has undergone fundamental changes in accordance with the convergence program aimed at bringing the Greek economy closer to the EU economies.
