The joint statements of Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Recep Tayyip Erdogan after their meeting at the Maximou mansion caused shock among the Greeks. Their essence boils down to the Prime Minister’s statement that the next step in Greek-Turkish relations will be the definition of the continental shelf and EEZ.
The Prime Minister did not provide any details on how the EEZ and continental shelf would be demarcated. But this particular point is more important than anything else in Greek-Turkish relations, since everyone knows perfectly well what international maritime law says and what Turkey wants.
Of course, R.T. Erdogan did not fail to speak again about the Turkish minority in Thrace. However, Kyriakos Mitsotakis responded to this statement with his own remark and said that the minority in Thrace is Muslim because it is recognized as such in the Treaty of Lausanne.
On the issue of Cyprus, the Turkish president said it was time to “face up to reality”, meaning he wanted to promote Turkey’s two-state “solution”, although he did not say so directly.
Kyriakos Mitsotakis began by mentioning crises such as the three-year pandemic and the war in Ukraine, which caused an energy crisis.
“At the same time, we have faced and continue to face regional conflicts. But bilateral relations have also experienced fluctuations. At times they threatened them with danger. It is therefore imperative that countries take a calmer path. Greece and Turkey must look for solutions, and if they are not overcome, they should not automatically give rise to tensions and crises.
We agreed in Vilnius to pick up the thread of cooperation in this direction. The roadmap we adopted includes 3 levels, including political dialogue and confidence-building measures. And we have already met 3 times in 6 months.
In terms of migration, we have seen a significant reduction in flows, thanks to border management and cooperation between the police and port police of the two countries.
Our country supports simplification of the distribution of funds within the framework of European legislation. Moreover, Greece asked for and received approval EUto activate the opportunity for Turks and their families to visit our 10 islands all year round, which either have structures for refugees or have ferry connections to Turkey.
We do not agree on the problem of Cyprus, for us, like for Greece, there is no solution outside the United Nations framework, and the dialogue must begin where it ended in 2017.
100 years after the signing of the Treaty of Lausanne, a declaration of good neighborly relations was concluded – the relations that Constantine Mitsotakis dreamed of when he received the great Ipekki Prize in 1997. A declaration that we signed with full respect for the rights arising from the sovereignty of each country. The next step could be an approach to the delimitation of the continental shelf and EEZ.”
Erdogan’s statements
“I am very pleased to be back in Athens. I would like to thank the Prime Minister for the welcome. We want to promote the positive relationships that exist. I believe that we can hold such a meeting once a year.
We agreed to increase the volume of bilateral trade to 10 billion. Our desire is to solve common problems.
We discussed how to combat international terrorism, welcomed the closure of the Lavrio camp, and I called for caution so that there are no such camps sheltering terrorists.
The Turkish minority in Greece and the Roma community in Turkey are the building blocks of our cultural wealth. I expressed hope for an improvement in the situation of the Turkish minority in Western Thrace.
We have said from the very beginning that we do not condone attacks on civilians in Gaza.”
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