A monument commemorating 30th anniversary of establishment of diplomatic relations between Kazakhstan and Greece was unveiled in the northeastern part of the Athens metropolis – in the city of Acharnes, Delovoy Kazakhstan reports.
The original bronze monument is in the shape of an apple, embodying its ancestral homeland of Kazakhstan, and framed in an olive branch, which has been considered a symbol of peace and prosperity in Greece from ancient times.
The initiative of the Embassy of the Republic of Kazakhstan in Greece was supported by the Mayor of Acharnes Spyros Vrettos. The unanimous decision of the members of the city council allocated a place for the monument on the central square directly opposite the city hall.
In Acharnes, which located in 11 km from the center of the capital and is part of the Athens metropolitan area, compactly inhabited by more than 30 thousand Greeks from Kazakhstan, who have returned to their historic homeland.
Ambassador Yerlan Baudarbek-Kozhatayev in his welcoming speech noted that the monument is an example of «people's diplomacy» and a vivid example of the continuous cultural connection between Kazakhstan and Greece.
The project was implemented with the sponsorship of the company «DKG Development», whose founders are natives of Kazakhstan, now citizens of Greece, father and son Ioannis and Constantine Petridis.
Historical attractions in the municipality of Acharnes are the Tatoi Palace of greek royal family and the convent «Agia Paraskevi».
According to DNA research, the Sievers apple tree (lat. Malus sieversii), which grows in Kazakhstan, is the ancestor of the modern varieties of the apple.
