Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov slammed Greece over its position on the war in Ukraine and accused the country of “dismantling” decades worth of cooperation and engaging in “aggressive anti-Russian statements.”
Lavrov’s statements were published by the Russian embassy in Greece and translated in Greek, too.
“With the launch of the special military operation [in Ukraine], Greece severed cooperation with Russia that had been built over many decades. An entire spectrum of Russian-Greek cooperation – from politics and the economy to culture and humanitarian issues – was dismantled. After nearly four years, there has been no change in official Athens’ approach toward our country,” Lavrov was quoted by the Russian Embassy in Greece as saying in a statement for a press conference on the results of Russia’s diplomatic activities in 2025.
According to the social media post by the embassy, Lavrov went on to accuse Athens of sending arms to Ukraine, which, it claimed, are used against civilians in the Donbas region, “despite the fact that a large Greek diaspora has lived there for centuries.”
“Athens did not consider them. It failed to take into account that their compatriots live there, maintain relations with Greece, have relatives there, and that Athens’ actions create not only numerous problems but also direct threats to their lives and health,” Lavrov was quoted as saying.
The statement, according to the embassy, adds that Kyiv, “disregarding Greece’s own defense capabilities, is methodically pressuring the Greek leadership to transfer highly effective Russian- and Soviet-made air defense systems currently in service with the Greek armed forces to Ukraine.”
🇷🇺🇬🇷Το ΥΠΕΞ της Ρωσίας:
Έπειτα από σχεδόν τέσσερα χρόνια δεν υπήρξε καμία αλλαγή στην προσέγγιση της επίσημης Αθήνας προς τη χώρα μας. Συνεχίζουμε να ακούμε τις επιθετικές αντιρωσικές δηλώσεις και αβάσιμες ρωσοφοβικές κατηγορίες εναντίον μας. pic.twitter.com/4BMgRHN479
— Rus Embassy, Greece (@RFEmbassyGr) February 5, 2026
Athens responds
The Greek government responded to the harsh criticism allegedly made by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov with its consistent Greek positions on the war in Ukraine.
Asked to comment on Lavrov’s statements, government spokesman Pavlos Marinakis said:
“I don’t think we need to make any special comments. Greece, as an equal member of the European Union, at all levels, stands with Europe and with the right side of history. It doesn’t do anything different, it doesn’t do anything special. And in every individual discussion, I think that any decision we have made is based on the logic that we are a modern Western state, where some things, such as support for the defender, are not weighed or entered into the negotiation process.”
