Greece will ban having children via surrogacy for single men and male same-sex couples

ATHENS, Greece — Men in Greece will be barred from having children via surrogacy if they are single or in a same-sex relationship, the justice minister said Tuesday, asserting that it's intended to eliminate legal ambiguity over the concept of inability to carry a pregnancy.

Giorgos Floridis said the proposed changes will be submitted to parliament soon as part of broader civil code reform.

“We are now clarifying unequivocally that the concept of inability to carry a pregnancy does not refer to an inability arising from one’s gender,” Floridis told reporters. “In other words, a woman may be unable to carry a pregnancy whether she is in a male-female couple, a female same-sex couple or on her own."

Greece legalized same-sex marriage last year — the first Orthodox Christian-majority country to do so. The marriage equality law was opposed by Greece’s powerful Orthodox Church and conservative groups. Parliament approved civil partnerships for gay couples in 2015.

In contrast to growing consensus in support of same-sex marriage, Europe’s legal landscape for surrogacy varies widely. Many countries prohibit all forms of the practice or impose restrictions.