Ukrainian parliament thanks Greece for pledging to rebuild Mariupol’s destroyed maternity hospital

"Thank you for your support!" tweeted the Ukrainian parliament in its official account. In the meantime Consul General in Mariupol, Manolis Androulakis, has set off on his journey, diplomatic sources say.

The Parliament of Ukraine on Friday thanked Greece and Greek goverment for pledging to rebuild Mariupol’s maternity hospital, which was recently destroyed by Russian shelling.

“Thank you for your support!” tweeted the Ukrainian parliament in its official account (Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine), including emojis of Greek and Ukrainian flags and a handshake, and also retweeting Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis’ earlier Friday post, which said: “Greece is ready to rebuild the maternity hospital in Mariupol, the center of the Greek minority in Ukraine, a city dear to our hearts and symbol of the barbarity of the war.”

Consul General in Mariupol, Manolis Androulakis, has set off on his journey, diplomatic sources say

In the meantime Consul General in Mariupol, Manolis Androulakis, is well and has now set off, resuming his journey westward, diplomatic sources said on Friday. According to the same sources, reports claiming that he was being held hostage “are the definition of lying”.

“The foreign ministry is in constant contact with him and, fortunately, everything is going well,” they pointed out.

On Thursday, Androulakis stayed overnight near Uman. The operation to evacuate the consul general, as well as local staff of the OSCE mission and their family members, from Mariupol started on Tuesday, March 15, and has been heading west. The operation is taking place in close coordination with the OSCE.