Greece Regional Governor Apostolos Tzitzikostas was denied entry into Turkey and reportedly detained for over six hours on Saturday.
Tzitzikostas, who is the Governor of Central Macedonia Region and the President of the European Committee of the Regions (CoR), traveled by sea on the day from Thessaloniki to Izmir, to attend the Euro-Mediterranean Conference of the Committee of the Regions.
According to AMNA, he was denied entry and detained in an office for hours before Turkey eventually revoked the entry ban.
At around 7 pm local time, Tzitzikostas wrote on Twitter: “Following actions by the EU and the Greek side, the Turkish government decided to lift the unacceptable ban on my entry into Turkey. Nevertheless, I stand by my decision to immediately leave the country and return to Greece.”
Σας ευχαριστώ για τη συμπαράστασή σας. Μετά από ενέργειες της ΕΕ και της ελληνικής πλευράς, η τουρκική κυβέρνηση αποφάσισε να άρει την απαράδεκτη απαγόρευση εισόδου μου στην Τουρκία. Παρόλα αυτά εμμένω στην απόφασή μου να αναχωρήσω αμέσως από τη χώρα και να επιστρέψω στην Ελλάδα.
— Apostolos Tzitzikostas (@tzitzikostas) November 5, 2022
Greek Foreign Ministry reacts to entry ban
The Greek governor was given no explanation for being denied entry to Turkey, AMNA adds.
In a statement, the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned the “unacceptable and totally abusive detention and entry ban of the Governor of Central Macedonia by Turkish authorities in Izmir earlier on Saturday.”
“We expect the competent Turkish authorities to give an immediate explanation and we call on them to take the necessary measures to avoid similar incidents in the future,” the Ministry added.
“The Greek Embassy in Ankara, as well as the Greek Consulate General in Izmir were mobilized from the first moment, making the relevant complaints to the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs,” it noted.
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