Athens seeks to maintain calm waters in Greek-Turkish relations ahead of Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis’ meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The goal is that any differences do not automatically generate tensions.
The meeting will take place on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly probably next Monday (or Wednesday at the latest) in New York.
The meeting between the two leaders will take place at a critical juncture, as the migration issue has been rekindled in Europe and it is important not to increase flows from the Turkish side.
In Athens, there are no illusions that Ankara will forget its revisionist narrative from one day to the next, and this can be seen from a series of moves by its neighbor. It is typical that references to the “Blue Homeland” have increased, while an attempt was made in summer to trigger tension in the area near the island of Kassos, and the Turkish side seems persisting on the Cyprus issue.
The Greek red lines have been clearly drawn and what is emphatically underlined is that there will be no discussion on issues of sovereignty and sovereign rights. The aim is to put forward a positive agenda (e.g. economy, environment) and from there on make an effort to move the discussion to more difficult issues.
At the same time, Athens looks at the developments in the wider “neighborhood” and seeks to maintain the good climate and open channels of communication with states in the region (there will indeed be relevant meetings of the prime minister in New York). It should be noted here that a tripartite meeting of the foreign ministers of Greece, Cyprus and Egypt is expected to take place, a meeting that will be held at an interesting juncture as it was preceded by a visit by the president of Egypt to Turkey. It is obvious that Erdogan is trying to close fronts in the region and in this context he seeks, among other things, to improve his relations with Egypt.
