Next year's session of the Interparliamentary Assembly on Orthodoxy (IAO) may be held in Syria, Russian lower house lawmaker Sergei Gavrilov, who is also the IAO's president, told reporters in the Greek capital on Friday
ATHENS (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 15th November, 2019) Next year's session of the Interparliamentary Assembly on Orthodoxy (IAO) may be held in Syria, Russian lower house lawmaker Sergei Gavrilov, who is also the IAO's president, told reporters in the Greek capital on Friday.
Athens is currently hosting a IAO conference, which started on Thursday and will conclude later in the day. The session held in Georgia's capital in June was canceled due to a scandal involving the Russian delegation Georgian opposition lawmakers had left the meeting in protest because Gavrilov opened the session while seated in Georgia's parliament speaker's chair, a move that was seen as offensive.
"We suggested, and all the IAO members endorsed our initiative, holding one of the next session's events in Syria to meet with church and public representatives and authorities, assess the state of Christian communities, the damage and what has already been done, including the reconstruction of the Greek Orthodox Convent of St. Thecla in Maaloula [which is being done] with Russia's support," the Russian lawmaker said, adding that the session may be held at the beginning of 2020.
According to Gavrilov, the participants recognized Russia's role in restoring peace to Syria and the importance of supporting the middle Eastern nation's efforts in creating the necessary conditions and ensuring security for repatriating refugees.
The Interparliamentary Assembly on Orthodoxy was set up in 1993 at the initiative of the Greek parliament. Its headquarters is in Athens. Lawmakers from 25 countries participate in regular IAO sessions.
