Greece’s Foreign Minister, Giorgos Gerapetritis, stated that deferring the resolution of disagreements with Turkey is not in the interests of the two nations, and that the Greek government wishes to deepen discussion and collaboration with Turkey
Gerapetritis provided information about his country’s foreign policy aims during the assembly talks when the new government programme was considered.
“The sincere goal of cooperation and dialogue in accordance with international law will continue to be our compass in our relations with Turkey,” Gerapetritis stated.
“Greece wants good neighbourly relations with Turkey,” Gerapetritis said, adding that the goal is to restart negotiations between the two countries and develop a positive agenda with steps to improve confidence and economic cooperation.
Noting that Greece’s Prime Minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, will meet with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan during the NATO Summit next week in Vilnius, Gerapetritis stated that Mitsotakis will attempt to develop relations with Erdogan based on mutual respect.
“Greece, with the problems related to the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) and the continental shelf with Turkey, wants to solve them with similar agreements as it did with Egypt and Italy,” Gerapetritis emphasised, adding that “the continuous postponement of these problems does not serve the interests of both countries.”
He stated that the Cyprus issue is a top priority for Greek foreign policy and that the two-state solution cannot be accepted.
Gerapetritis maintained the premise that the “status quo” provided by the Treaty of Lausanne and the Montreux Convention cannot be modified, stating that his country finds the alteration unacceptable.
Gerapetritis indicated that Athens plans to pursue an aggressive foreign policy.
He stated that Greece supports Sweden’s NATO membership, will continue to support Ukraine, will take the initiative for the Balkans’ European Union (EU) perspective, will prioritise regional cooperation in the Eastern Mediterranean, and aims to develop relations with Israel, Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and the United States.