Greece, which has sent military and humanitarian aid to Ukraine like other European countries, announced on Monday that it was freezing all new residence permits for Russian nationals who invest in Greek territory.
"
Issuance and renewal of residence permits for investment purposes (...) of citizens of the Russian Federation are suspended until further notice
," Greek Migration Minister Notis Mitarakis said in a statement.
Read alsoWhat economic sanctions have been taken against Russia since the invasion of Ukraine?
Athens also reiterated its official protests against the Russian raids in southern Ukraine, where ten civilians of Greek origin were killed, and confirmed the dispatch to Ukraine "
of defense equipment with two (transport planes military) C-130, as well as significant humanitarian aid,
” government spokesman Giannis Economou said Monday at a press briefing.
"
Kalashnikov-type assault rifles
" as well as missile launchers and ammunition were also planned, according to Greek media.
"
Respect for Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity is non-negotiable
," Greek Foreign Ministry spokesman Alexandros Papaioannou said on Monday.
"
We reaffirm to the Russian side its obligation to respect international law
,” he urged on Greek public television ERT on Monday.
Ukrainian citizens taking refuge in Greece
At least ten members of Ukraine's Greek community, which numbers more than 100,000 people, were killed on Saturday in air raids that Athens describes as "
unacceptable criminal acts
".
On Friday, Greece had withdrawn its diplomatic representation from Kiev while leaving open its consulates in the cities of Mariulpol and Odessa in the south of the country where the Greek diaspora lives.
Thirty "
Greek citizens with their families were evacuated from Odessa
" to go to Moldova accompanied by the Greek consul of Odessa, the Greek Foreign Ministry said on Monday.
Read alsoMore than 500,000 refugees from Ukraine identified by the UNHCR
Over the past five days, "
1,032 Ukrainian citizens have crossed the Greek border
" to seek refuge there, according to a statement released Monday after a ministerial meeting on the flow of refugees from Ukraine.
The majority of Ukrainian refugees enter Greece through the Greek-Bulgarian border, according to images broadcast by Greek television channels.
As in the rest of the European Union, Greece has closed its airspace to all Russian planes, the Greek civil aviation authority has announced.
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