Lina Mendoni, Minister of Culture of the Hellenic Republic The year 2025 marked an exceptionally successful chapter for Greece within UNESCO, reflecting the country’s prominent role, credibility, and sustained engagement across key areas of the Organization’s mandate, including culture, cultural heritage protection, and global ocean science.
A milestone of particular symbolic and cultural significance was achieved when UNESCO officially recognized the international importance of the Greek language and its impact on other civilizations even in present times. At the initiative of the Greek government, the 221st Session of UNESCO’s Executive Board approved, in March 2025, the establishment of 9 February as World Greek Language Day. The decision was officially ratified last November by the Organization’s General Conference in Samarkand.
In May 2025, Greece was elected to the Subsidiary Committee of the Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property (1970), during the 8th Meeting of the States Parties held in Paris. This election constituted a recognition of Greece’s steadfast commitment to the protection of cultural heritage and its efforts toward the effective implementation of the Convention.
A milestone of particular symbolic and cultural significance was achieved when UNESCO officially recognized the international importance of the Greek language and its impact on other civilizations even in present times. At the initiative of the Greek government, the 221st Session of UNESCO’s Executive Board approved, in March 2025, the establishment of 9 February as World Greek Language Day. The decision was officially ratified last November by the Organization’s General Conference in Samarkand.
In May 2025, Greece was elected to the Subsidiary Committee of the Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property (1970), during the 8th Meeting of the States Parties held in Paris. This election constituted a recognition of Greece’s steadfast commitment to the protection of cultural heritage and its efforts toward the effective implementation of the Convention.
On 2 July 2025, Greece achieved a historic electoral result by being elected to the Executive Council of the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC), receiving 92 votes out of 110 valid ballots. This outcome—one of the strongest recorded in both absolute and percentage terms—underscored the confidence of UNESCO Member States in Greece’s active contribution to maritime affairs, ocean governance, and international scientific cooperation.
In parallel with its electoral achievements, Greece concluded its successful term as a member of the World Heritage Committee (2021–2025), a period marked by an active presence and substantive interventions. A major breakthrough was the unanimous inscription of the Minoan Palatial Centres on the World Heritage List during the 47th session of the Committee in Paris, confirming the outstanding universal value of Minoan heritage.
In parallel with its electoral achievements, Greece concluded its successful term as a member of the World Heritage Committee (2021–2025), a period marked by an active presence and substantive interventions. A major breakthrough was the unanimous inscription of the Minoan Palatial Centres on the World Heritage List during the 47th session of the Committee in Paris, confirming the outstanding universal value of Minoan heritage.
The year concluded with Greece’s election to the Committee for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict for the term 2025–2029, at the elections held during the 11th Meeting of the Parties to the Second Protocol (1999) to the 1954 Hague Convention, on 2 December 2025 in Paris. This Committee is of great geopolitical importance and universal cultural significance, as it constitutes a key international forum where the protection of cultural heritage is addressed in the context of the most critical armed conflicts of our time, including situations that dominate the contemporary international security agenda and news. Greece ranked first in the vote, receiving 79 of the 85 valid votes cast by the States Parties to the Convention.
The above achievements of 2025 demonstrate that Greece has consistently shown leadership, expertise, and unwavering dedication to promoting the principles and objectives of UNESCO. Its long-standing engagement and multifaceted contribution to safeguarding both tangible and intangible cultural heritage reflect Greece’s firm conviction that cultural identity and memory must be preserved even under the most challenging circumstances.
The electoral successes reflected also the broad recognition by UNESCO Member States of Greece’s consistent role, substantive contribution and credibility within the Organization, as well as its unwavering commitment to UNESCO’s principles, values, and objectives, underscoring thus its enduring commitment to advancing culture, science, and heritage as pillars of international cooperation and peace. At the same time, a decisive and indispensable enabling factor in the successful outcome of these efforts was the central and leading role played by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which, through sustained, well-targeted, and high-level diplomatic engagement, careful strategic planning, and a fully coordinated approach, actively shaped consensus to support Greece’s candidacies across the relevant governing bodies.
The above achievements of 2025 demonstrate that Greece has consistently shown leadership, expertise, and unwavering dedication to promoting the principles and objectives of UNESCO. Its long-standing engagement and multifaceted contribution to safeguarding both tangible and intangible cultural heritage reflect Greece’s firm conviction that cultural identity and memory must be preserved even under the most challenging circumstances.
The electoral successes reflected also the broad recognition by UNESCO Member States of Greece’s consistent role, substantive contribution and credibility within the Organization, as well as its unwavering commitment to UNESCO’s principles, values, and objectives, underscoring thus its enduring commitment to advancing culture, science, and heritage as pillars of international cooperation and peace. At the same time, a decisive and indispensable enabling factor in the successful outcome of these efforts was the central and leading role played by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which, through sustained, well-targeted, and high-level diplomatic engagement, careful strategic planning, and a fully coordinated approach, actively shaped consensus to support Greece’s candidacies across the relevant governing bodies.
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