Aegean and Eastern Mediterranean are its main menu Mitsotakis – Erdogan meeting this afternoon (6pm) in New York, the second in 2023. The ministers and deputy ministers of foreign affairs of the two countries will be present at the meeting to be held at the House of Turkey.

Athens has made it clear that there are red lines, while from Turkey, despite the positive climate, harsh statements about a blue homeland have been heard lately.

However, the Turkish president said yesterday that Greece and Turkey have decades of friendship.

However, yesterday Erdogan from the UN platform, referring to Cyprus, kept a hard line and called on all countries to recognize the Turkish Cypriots as an independent state, asking for the definitive partition of the island.

Threat from Erdogan’s associate against Greece

The chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Turkish Parliament raises the tone a few hours before the meeting Mitsotakis – Erdogan in New York, aiming at the “calm waters” in the Aegean and Eastern Mediterranean.

Fuat Oktai brought back the casus belli saying that it is “a cause of war to extend territorial waters to 12 miles”, while adding that “we will not ask anyone about the Hagia Sophia”, according to what is transmitted from Istanbul by Manolis Kostidis.

Fuat Oktai, chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Turkish Parliament said: “Increase to 12 nautical miles in the Aegean Islands, in the Aegean Sea. They say there needs to be an understanding about extending territorial waters to 12 nautical miles. But we had already declared this a cause of war (including the increase to 12 miles).

What does the issue with Hagia Sophia have to do with it? They find it disturbing that Hagia Sophia has opened. What does that have to do with it? Shall we ask you? They say ‘you must accept that the Patriarchate is Ecumenical’. What report is this? That is, they want Turkey to accept a structure similar to the Vatican. That is an institution of the Turkish Republic and it has been determined under what conditions it will be administered. If you want this to be managed with a structure like the Vatican and you put in the issues and the openness of Hagia Sophia, this is against the principle of neutrality”.