In the evening the meeting Mitsotaki – Draghi in Italy. With the Turkish provocation at its zenith, Athens is seeking from Rome to “turn its back” in order for Tayyip Erdogan to restrain himself.
By Penelope Galliou
Front for isolation of Turkish provocation is already being built by Greece and its Partners in view of Summit of 27 European leaders the day after Thursday and Friday in Brussels. Leader in this diplomatic sprint Greek Prime Ministerin order to erect embankments in Ankara delinquency.
Starting today with the meeting that Kyriakos Mitsotakis will have tonight (20.30 Greek time) with Italian counterpart of Mario Draghi in Rome. A meeting that takes place in the shadow of the result of the French elections and him danger of slowing down France’s momentum in the joint effort of the European perspective. At this juncture, the role of Mario Draghi is becoming even more active for the European edifice and the Mitsotakis Government is rushing to take advantage of this. At the moment, in fact, with the Turkish provocation at its zenith, Athens seeks from Rome to turn its back on both European and bilateral level, in order to to meditate on Tayyip Erdogan.
So apart from its consequences Russian invasion of Ukraine for European citizens and the need for a coordinated approach at European level, the meeting of the two leaders is expected to developments in the Eastern Mediterranean against the background of the Turkish aggression that the prime minister will raise on Thursday at the summit. This fact gives the Mitsotakis-Draghi meeting added value and a special political and symbolic displacement on the eve of the European Council. It is also recalled that Greece and Italy have a Maritime Zone Delimitation Agreement, which is a model for the implementation of international law, as well as international legality and cooperation of coastal states in the region.
The EU warning
At the same time, action is expected to be taken by the EU, which already yesterday and before its leaders met, sent a new stern message to Ankara calling on it to respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Greece.
According to Euroactiv and draft conclusions of the 27 leaders he cites, European leaders are expected to condemn Turkey again for the new escalation against Greece. “The European Council has expressed deep concern over Turkey’s repeated recent actions and statements. Turkey must respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all EU Member States.” referred to in the draft conclusions, according to Euroactiv.
Recalling its previous conclusions and the declaration of 25 March 2021, the European Council “It expects Turkey to fully respect international law, to de-escalate tensions in the interests of regional stability in the Eastern Mediterranean, and to promote good neighborly relations in a sustainable manner.”
Already last week, the Commission sent a strong message to Ankara calling on “to stop all threats and actions that harm good neighborly relations and to respect the sovereignty of all EU Member States in their territorial waters and airspace” had stated the Representative of the Commission for Foreign Affairs, Peter Stano. He even warned Turkey that if it did not de-escalate “the EU and its Member States would have to consider an appropriate response. This was clearly stated twice last year by European leaders and that remains our position to this day.”
In the same climate and her statement President of the Commission, Ursula von der Leyenwho stressed that Turkey is now further away than ever from the EU.
The message of Mitsotakis
Given that the Greek Prime Minister will re-expose Turkish delinquency at the Summit of European Leaders and will demand the explicit condemnation of Ankara, fired warning shots at Turkey in an interview with capital.gr, warning that its insistence on revising and challenging our national sovereignty will face not only the determination and strength of Greece but also its partners. “It is not possible today, it is inconceivable for anyone to talk about changing borders. So any question of our national sovereignty, with any excuse, is completely unthinkable and condemnable from the beginning. It is a discussion that no one will ever even agree to have. I am referring only to Greece, I am also referring to our partners ” said the Greek Prime Minister. THE Kyriakos Mitsotakis “Greece’s position today is geopolitically strengthened. And in terms of relations with the United States, we had a very successful visit to the United States, which reaffirmed the strategic depth of the But also at European level, the European institutions have unreservedly supported Greece, as I would say all the member states of the European Union have done in their bilateral positions. Everyone understands that this extreme Turkish rhetoric has gone the limits “he observed.
The NATO bra de fer
One hard bra de fer between Greece and Turkey is expected to be played in view of it NATO Summit in Madrid on June 29-30, if Turkey attempts to denounce Greece with non-existent accusations about the militarization of the Greek islands, as propagated by Turkish media. Responding to this possibility and to the publications that carry diplomatic sources to point out that the Turkish side will not raise the issue of demilitarization of the Aegean islands at the NATO Summit, the Foreign Ministry Spokesman Alexandros Papaioannou stressed that “Greece does not anticipate the stance that Turkey will take at the forthcoming NATO summit, as well as in other international fora, nor does it circulate scenarios regarding the possibility of a Turkish unilateral objection to the demilitarization of the Aegean islands.”
“We deal with the escalation of Turkish rhetoric with prudence and composure and respond with arguments, on the basis of International Law and the Law of the Sea.” Mr. Papaioannou added and concluded that “at the same time, we are informing our partners and allies about the Turkish delinquent behavior”.
However, in the event that Turkey carries out its threats and raises the issue with NATO, the line of Athens is that the Greek side will explain, as always calmly, that The NATO Summit is not the right place to make such absurd claims.
