German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said that neither Greeks nor Germans are infallible during a ceremony where he was made an Honorary Doctorate of the University of Piraeus.

Opening his speech, he advised to “love your friend with all his faults” and said that he was visiting Greece as a “good friend and he was accepted as a good friend.” He then continued, adding that “nobody in Europe is infallible – neither the Greeks, nor Germans!” He pointed out that his visit to Greece comes “at a time when it is not good neither for Greece nor for Europe.”

The German official continued said that different views are fundamental to EU values and that the Honorary Doctorate bestowed on him by the University of Piraeus is not something he views as a personal gain, but as impetus to work harder for better relations between the two countries that is a basis for the common European future.