Athens, 15 February 2021

Special session of Hellenic Parliament on occasion of 40-year anniversary of Greece's accession into United Europe - “Greece-EU: 40 years stronger together”

2021 marks the 40th anniversary of Greece's accession to the then European Economic Community and today's European Union. 

The Hellenic Parliament, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs under the Alternate Foreign Minister for European Affairs, Miltiasidis Varvitsioits, the Representation of the European Commission and the Office of the European Parliament in Greece will hold a series of joint initiatives, kicking off with the special meeting of the European Affairs Committee of the Hellenic Parliament on Thursday 18 February at 17:00 in the Senate Hall of the Parliament. 

The meeting, which will be chaired by the 1st Vice-President of the Parliament and Chairman of the European Affairs Committee, Nikitas Kaklamanis,  will be addressed by the President of the Hellenic Parliament, Constantine Tassoulas. 

Speeches will be made by the Alternate Minister of Foreign Affairs for European Affairs, Miltiadis Varvitsiotis, the Vice-President of the European Commission, Margaritis Schinas (with a live online intervention) and the Vice-President of the European Parliament, Dimitris Papadimoulis.

During this special session, which will be broadcast live by the Hellenic Parliament TV Channel, the joint logo of the 40th anniversary will be presented. 

This will be followed by the illumination of the Parliament building facade with the anniversary logo.

 The objective of the joint actions is:

- to fuel the public debate on the stocktaking of four decades of Greece as an EU member state, on how accession to the European institutions changed the country and how it determines life in Greece and the country's prospects

- to highlight the historical significance of Greece's integration into the European family, also in relation to the overall national course over the 200 years since 1821

- to encourage citizens to express their expectations in the framework of the Conference on the Future of Europe that will commence soon and is expected to conclude in the summer of 2022

Indicatively, the actions that will be implemented throughout 2021 include: 

- a joint special event on Europe Day (9 May)

- a regional dimension with events across the regions to highlight the contribution of the Union to the local communities in a tangible way (in cooperation with the Regions, the Europe Direct Information Centres, volunteers of the together.eu network and local media)

- a public debate in the media and in social media to evaluate the impact of our participation

- accounts-interviews by the protagonists of Greece's participation in the EU on TV and social networks

- the collection and promotion of accounts by Greek citizens on the impact of the EU in their place of residence, in cooperation with the Europe Direct Information Centres, the network of Ambassador Schools of the European Parliament and the together.eu volunteer network (an audiovisual library will be created by area/region, which will be used at local events)

- the release of a postage stamp marking the 40 years since Greece's accession to the EU (1981 - 2021)

Follow the four institutions on social media for more on the events and related developments through the #40ΕλλάδαΕΕ hashtag and share your own testimonies on social media using the same hashtag. 

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