Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis met in New York, on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, in the presence of Foreign Ministers Georgios Gerapetritis and Hakan Fidan.
The leaders of the two countries confirmed the positive atmosphere in relations between Greece and Turkey, and the strong will to maintain it.
Leaders of the two countries and foreign ministers of Greece and Turkey
What does the roadmap include?
Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Recep Tayyip Erdogan agreed on a road map for contacts between the two countries, outlined at a meeting of foreign ministers on September 5, which includes:
- Meetings in mid-October of deputy foreign ministers responsible for political dialogue and a positive agenda.
- Meetings in November on confidence-building measures.
- Meeting of the Supreme Council for Cooperation between Greece and Turkey on December 7 in Thessaloniki.
In addition, the leaders of the two countries exchanged views on regional and international issues.
Agreement on Cooperation in the Field of Migration
The two leaders also discussed the climate crisis and its implications, especially in the Mediterranean region as both countries have recently experienced severe natural disasters, and agreed that strengthening cooperation in civil defense is a priority. Finally, they agreed to work together to solve the problem of migration, recognizing that this is a common task. The foreign ministers of the two countries will continue to cooperate and coordinate actions to advance the agreed road map.
Mitsotakis: “We had a productive discussion”
After the meeting with Turkish President Kyriakos Mitsotakis, in his statements to the media, he noted that it was “productive discussion” and emphasized the importance of cooperation between the two countries in the field of migration.
“We had a productive conversation with President Erdogan in the presence of our foreign ministers and diplomatic advisers,” the Prime Minister said, adding: “We agreed to continue working to deepen the positive climate in Greek-Turkish relations that has been established in recent months and clearly defined level of contacts and meetings for the coming period in terms of political dialogue, confidence-building measures, as well as in terms of promoting a positive agenda. We also agreed that the next meeting of the High Cooperation Council will take place on December 7 in Thessaloniki.
At the same time, we had the opportunity to discuss a number of common problems facing our countries. As an example, I will give the problem of illegal migration, where, in my opinion, Turkey’s cooperation is necessary in order to reduce migration flows to a minimum. But of course, we also discussed the issues and main problems of the climate crisis, since Greece and Turkey are two Mediterranean countries that this summer faced major natural disasters resulting from global warming and the climate crisis that is already here with us. I believe that this area of cooperation can be explored further in order to become the subject of specific agreements that will be signed within the framework of the High Cooperation Council in December in Thessaloniki.”
Erdogan’s post
In turn, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, shortly after meeting with the Greek Prime Minister, wrote on Twitter: “I hope that the meeting with Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis at the Turkish House will be useful for our country and the region.”
Yunanistan Başbakanı Kiryakos Miçotakis ile Türkevi’nde gerçekleştirdiğimiz görüşme ülkemiz ve bölgemiz için hayırlara vesile olsun. pic.twitter.com/kvf8TAWAKJ
— Recep Tayyip Erdoğan (@RTErdogan) September 20, 2023
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