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Saturday, July 28, 2018

Statement of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, N. Kotzias, at the Press Conference following the 2nd Ministerial Meeting of the Ancient Civilizations Forum (La Paz, 13.07.2018)

I am happy that Bolivia is so far away from Greece, but our souls and our hearts are very close. We feel a lot of love for Bolivia. We have a very famous song saying that our heart also belong to China. We are three countries, three people, three cultures. China is the founder of the modern state. After finishing with the wars of the six states, they created the big China, the modern state, 2500 years back. We are the founders of Democracy, maybe this is the reason for all the problems nowadays. Bolivia is the spirit of all of us. We are three countries which are very proud for our history, but we are not “prisoners” of history. History has to be a school, not a prison. So we have to take the big decision to work together to show to the other world the spirits and the meanings of our cultures. And ancient culture is still alive. It is alive through time, it is alive as a smart power, and has now become a big economic factor. What we are doing is to the benefit of our people, but also to the benefit of the world. In this Forum, we have common interests between us, but also with the world at large. If you look at what Chinese, Greek, Bolivian and other countries’ sciences brought to these thousands years to humanity, it certainly is a reason for being proud about our history. But history is not food, so we have to look to the future, to work together and to learn together. Many thanks to the Bolivian Government and to you Fernando, personally, for your hospitality, for your courage to fight with us. Many thanks to China. Together, we have co-founded this Forum. We have a long, parallel history. We have a long history, both of us, but unlike us, they are the big country. Last but not least, I came here in Bolivia in the morning hours and I have found out that the people of this country are lovely people, smiling, and extremely kind people. Thank you for your kindness. DECLARATION OF TIWANAKU (images/DECLARACION DE TIWANAKU 13 DE JULIO DE 2018.doc)


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