By Antonis Anzoletou

Smiles abounded yesterday at the Maximos Palace both during Tayyip Erdogan’s visit and afterwards. Everything went according to plan and nothing was reminiscent of 2017. The meeting of the two leaders reflected the will of the two countries to leave behind the “troubled waters” of the recent past.

It is not that the Turkish president has decided to go behind his red lines, but with careful statements he has shown that he wishes there to be a change at least in the rhetoric. What one can say with certainty is that for the next period an open path has been paved for more honest communication and for the continuation of the talks. And just the fact that Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Tayyip Erdogan renewed their appointment for the Spring is extremely important.

The Greek Prime Minister will visit Ankara, while the political dialogue, Confidence Building Measures and discussions on the positive agenda will continue in February. In the summer, the two leaders will meet at the NATO Summit in Washington.

Her signature is historic “Declaration of Athens” on Friendship and Good Neighborly Relations which sealed the mutual willingness to maintain the positive climate that has been cultivated since last year in February. It is a declaration of intent in which Turkey also commits to the goals of the United Nations Charter and the principles of International Law and friendly cooperation between states.

There is reference to the commitment to avoid statements and actions that undermine the spirit and letter of the Declaration or endanger peace in the region. It is not something binding, but it is indicative of the new environment in which the two sides have entered. For 10 months now, there have been almost zero violations of the national airspace. It is perhaps the most indicative element that is a barometer for the relations between Athens and Ankara.

It is a fact that the deadly earthquake in Antalya and the large financial obligations facing Tayyip Erdoğan have created other data. Nevertheless, the Greek government is keeping the positive elements of yesterday’s visit. Government sources emphasize that the atmosphere was correspondingly good behind closed doors during both the meeting of the two leaders.

The same applies to the meal that followed. A total of 15 agreements and joint declarations were signed focusing on trade, student exchange, transport, energy and tourism. More important was the agreement on migration with the two countries to establish 24-hour communication between the headquarters of the Greek Coast Guard and the Turkish Coast Guard. The Greek side after negotiations with the E.U. secured the granting of a seven-day visa for Turkish citizens visiting 10 Greek islands (Lemnos, Lesbos, Chios, Rhodes, Kastellorizo, Samos, Lemnos Leros, Kalymnos and Kos). This event was greeted with great enthusiasm by the residents on both sides of the Aegean.

From the meeting and the joint statements, the difficult issues between the two sides emerged. The Turkish President once again called the Muslim minority in Thrace Turkish, something for which Greek diplomacy was prepared. He received the prime minister’s answer in an absolutely clear way: “The determination of the minority status as Muslim is determined by the Lausanne Treaty itself. This climate of harmonious coexistence is our duty – it is the duty of the Greek legal order – to ensure and strengthen it”.

Kyriakos Mitsotakis made sure to make the Greek red lines clear by stating that the only difference between the two countries that Athens recognizes and can be resolved by appealing to the International Court of Justice in The Hague concerns the definition of the continental shelf and the EEZ. He also referred to the Cyprus issue saying that for Greece “there is no other solution than the decisions of the UN Security Council”, adding that the dialogue should be restarted from where it was interrupted in 2017.