By Penelope Galliou

The “line of communication” between Athens and Ankara was restored to a significant extent after the devastating earthquake in Turkey and was validated by the meeting of the Greek prime minister with the Turkish president in Vilnius, opening a new chapter in Greek-Turkish relations and fostering expectations for a stabilization of the climate in the two sides of the Aegean.

Under these circumstances, time is now counting down for the two leaders of Greece and Turkey, who for the second time in 2023 – after the meeting on the sidelines of the NATO Summit in Vilnius – will meet tomorrow, Wednesday, at six o’clock in the afternoon Greek time , in New York, at the “House of Turkey” on the sidelines of the 78th UN General Assembly that started yesterday.

“I consider it extremely positive that communication channels have been restored with Turkey at all levels. At the highest possible level through regular meetings between me and President Erdogan, at the political level of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs through a regular communication between the Minister and the Deputy Minister with their counterparts” commented Kyriakos Mitsotakis during the press conference he gave to framework of the TIF, giving the mark of the climate that occupies the Greek side regarding the meeting.

At the same time, of course, he remained unmoved by the red lines of Athens, repeating the fixed positions of our country, which are the only ones up for debate, and which concern exclusively the delimitation of the maritime zones, i.e. EEZ and continental shelf, in the Aegean and the Eastern Mediterranean. He clarified, emphatically and for the umpteenth time, that “there is no way Greece will ever discuss issues that have to do with national sovereignty.

Issues that have to do with the status of the islands of the Eastern Aegean – besides, I want to remind you that this year marks the 100th anniversary of the Treaty of Lausanne, which has proven to be extremely durable – but also issues that arise from the self-evident rights of which result from the exercise of sovereignty over these islands”.

Greece’s aim from this summit meeting between the Greek prime minister and the Turkish president is to maintain the good atmosphere, as government sources state and emphasize that even if nothing is agreed on the substantive issues, there should be a framework for cooperation and avoiding tensions without solving the substantive issues, this will be a significant benefit for our country as well as for Turkey.

In any case, the Government seeks to take advantage of the momentum, and to extend and ensure a period of calm as well as the cultivation of these bilateral relations that will contribute in this direction and make it difficult for any repetition of extreme tensions and events that marked the recent past. “We have no illusions, nor are we naive” commented a government source regarding the cultivation of expectations, emphasizing, however, the good climate and the pursuit of building a climate of trust and the conditions that will lead to a significant improvement in Greece-Turkey relations.

At the table of the bilateral meeting in New York, six people are expected to sit: in addition to the two leaders, the two foreign ministers Giorgos Gerapetritis and Hakan Fidan, the two diplomatic advisers of the two leaders, Anna Maria Bura, director of the Prime Minister’s diplomatic office from the Greek side and Akif Cagatay Kilic from Mr. Erdogan’s side.

The summit meeting of the two leaders is expected to act as a trigger for the next contacts between Greece and Turkey, at the level of foreign ministries and diplomatic delegations, with the main objective of maintaining the good climate, calm and dialogue. Contacts and bilateral processes, which will culminate during the Supreme Council of Cooperation between Greece and Turkey which will be held in Thessaloniki before the end of the year.