During a wide-ranging TV interview on Wednesday, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis expanded on the recent developments in the relations between Greece, Turkey, and North Macedonia.
Mitsotakis, who recently met Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara, reiterated that Greece rejects the idea of negotiating an all-encompassing settlement with Turkey, clarifying that Athens only acknowledges a single dispute with Ankara: the delimitation of maritime zones.
“The first thing we need to do is agree on the rules,” the Greek PM said in an interview with Open TV. “Greece does not entertain discussions about a ‘full-package solution’ since we only recognize one difference [with Turkey]. I don’t expect to see any change in the next 12 months; I find it unlikely. However, dialogue is valuable. We may have disagreements, but that does not mean we should avoid talking.”
During the same interview, the Greek Premier also expressed satisfaction with progress in bilateral relations.
“Greece has not changed its policy towards Turkey in the last five years. Turkey has changed, shifting from a stance of ‘Mitsotakis yok’ (Mitsotakis no) to a state of normalcy,” he said.
“We have achieved 15 months without any airspace violations, we have control over [illegal] migration, we have an agreement on visas for the Greek islands, and we have established a framework for dialogue on the longstanding issue of delimitation of the EEZ and continental shelf. It’s a 40-year-old problem, and there won’t be an instant solution,” he added.
Greece and North Macedonia
The Greek government will not seek ratification of the three cooperation memorandums signed with North Macedonia, concerning issues such as its EU accession process until Skopje fully complies with the Prespa Agreement signed in 2018, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis also said.
“At this point, we will not pursue the ratification of the memorandums,” Mitsotakis said in the same interview. “Ratifying the memorandums now would give Skopje leverage,” he said.
“Our counterparts in North Macedonia need to recognize that the election period has ended. Skopje is isolated, not Greece. I believe they will adjust to the pressures they will face,” Mitsotakis said, while also sending a message to the leadership of the Balkan country “to take their responsibilities seriously and cease engaging in petty political maneuvers.”
“We do not conduct foreign policy with grandstanding. We are firm that the Prespa Agreement must be honored,” he said.
North Macedonia’s newly elected president, Gordana Siljanovska-Davkova, has avoided using her country’s constitutional name, as stipulated in the Prespa accord, sparking a diplomatic dispute with Greece.
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