Greece and Turkey have committed to prioritizing efforts to strengthen ties between their people, according to statements made by Foreign Ministers Giorgos Gerapetritis and Hakan Fidan during a meeting in Athens on Friday.
“There were difficult moments during the past year, but there was a direct and honest channel of communication. Our contacts are gaining a regularity,” said the Greek minister.
He said that during his talks with his Turkish counterpart, he referred to three main pursuits: “To resolve cutting-edge issues and decompress tensions to prevent dangerous crises. To organize our discussion based on three pillars: the political dialogue, the positive agenda and confidence-building measures.”
He stressed that Greece will continue to support Turkey’s EU accession process. On the Cyprus issue, Gerapetritis made it clear that the position of Greece is firm on a solution based on UN decisions.
The Turkish minister spoke of a “historic opportunity to maintain the positive climate”. “Let’s make our eternal neighborhood an eternal friendship,” Hakan Fidan said.
“Issues that can cause a crisis must be discussed,” he added.
“Turkey-Greece relations are moving in a positive direction. The multidimensional cooperation in the fields of trade, tourism and culture is constantly being strengthened. We are making efforts to understand each other on critical issues and contribute to the well-being of our peoples with the win win approach as established with the Mitsotakis-Erdogan meetings,” said the Turkish Foreign Minister.
Delegations from the two countries discussed strengthening cooperation in tourism and trade.
The next round of the Greek-Turkish dialogue will be held on 2-3/12.
Greece seeks lasting peace with Turkey
Greece seeks lasting peace and friendship with Turkey Gerapetritis told the daily Hurriyet on the eve of Fidan’s visit to Athens.
“We should be able to build solid friendship bridges without ignoring the historical experiences of the past. My vision is to create a neighborhood between our nations on the basis of lasting peace and prosperity,” Gerapetritis said.
Dialogue and cooperation are the way to prosperity for future generations of Turks and Greeks, Turkish Foreign Minister Fidan said on Nov. 7.
Praising the improvement in relations between Turkey and Greece in the last two years, Fidan said the determination of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis played an important role in this during an interview with the Greek daily Ta Nea.
Fidan stated that it is necessary to explain to those who criticize the rapprochement between Turkey and Greece that the national interests of both countries can only be secured through friendship and cooperation.
Improvement in relations between the two NATO allies
Relations between Greece and Turkey have improved in the last two years. It started after Greece provided rapid humanitarian assistance to Turkey following the devastating earthquakes in early 2023.
Since then, high-level meetings and a mutual commitment to cooperation have taken place, with the countries’ leaders, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, both publicly supporting renewed dialogue.
The countries are planning further talks on complex issues, such as maritime boundaries and exclusive economic zones (EEZ), although these topics remain sensitive due to longstanding territorial disputes.
However, the path to resolving deep-rooted conflicts, like the Aegean Sea disputes and Cyprus issue, remains complex and will require continued diplomatic progress to achieve long-term peace between these NATO allies.
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