Greece, Turkey complete 62nd round of preliminary talks on maritime dispute

·

Greece and Turkey completed another round of exploratory talks in Athens on Tuesday, seeking common ground on a long-standing maritime boundaries dispute before a European Union summit later this month.

The four-hour discussions of the 62nd round were held in a central hotel.

The Greek delegation comprised seasoned diplomats Ambassador (ad hon.) Pavlos Apostolidis and Ambassador Alexandros Kougiou, as well as Ifigenia Kanara, director of the general secretary’s office of the Foreign Ministry.

The Turkish side was made up of Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister Sedat Onal, Director General for Bilateral Political & Maritime-Aviation-Border Affairs Cagatay Erciyes and Maritime Aviation Border Deputy General Manager Baris Kalkavan.

The two neighboring NATO allies are at odds over issues such as competing claims over their respective continental shelves, maritime rights and air space in the Mediterranean, energy, ethnically split Cyprus, and the status of some islands in the Aegean.

Underlining the tensions, Turkey this week protested against a deal between Greece, Israel and Cyprus for an undersea cable linking their electricity grids. According to the state-run Anadolu news agency, Ankara believes the planned route for the cable runs through Turkey’s continental shelf.

The exploratory talks are meant to lay the ground for formal negotiations but the two countries have made little progress in more than 60 rounds of meetings since 2002 and cannot even agree on what issues to discuss.

Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias said he was willing to meet his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu but any meeting “must take place in the right atmosphere.”

Ending a five-year hiatus, officials met in January after months of tension in the eastern Mediterranean. Diplomatic sources said another round of talks had resumed in a central Athens hotel on Tuesday, however no details have been given on the substance of the meetings.

Athens has said it will discuss only the demarcation of exclusive economic zones and the continental shelf in the Aegean and eastern Mediterranean, not issues of “national sovereignty.”

Ankara, which hopes to improve its relations with the European Union, which has supported EU-member Greece and threatened sanctions on Turkey, has said it wants all issues, including air space and the Aegean islands, on the table. The deliberations are scheduled to end with political consultations between the two countries’ ambassadors on Wednesday.

European leaders are expected to discuss the eastern Mediterranean at a meeting on March 25-26.

Greece, which in recent years has reached maritime accords with Italy and Egypt, argues that if the two sides fail to agree, they should refer the dispute to the International Court of Justice.

[Kathimerini, Reuters]

Advertisement

Share:

KEEP UP TO DATE WITH TGH

By subscribing you accept our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.

Advertisement

Latest News

How Maih Porfyri’s career pivot took her from fashion to the Paralympics

Maih Porfyri had only been in her job for a few months before she was whisked away on a trip to Paris to cover the Paralympic Games.

My partner doesn’t speak Greek – Can we still raise bilingual kids?

You can absolutely raise bilingual children, even if only one parent speaks Greek. Across the world, countless families do so successfully.

Joint bank accounts: Who gets the money?

All people named in a joint account are privy to the money by Law. Most of us have opened accounts at various bank branches.

Vergina considered among the world’s most mysterious destinations

Featured alongside global wonders, Vergina earns its place through a mystery that has eluded scholars for centuries.

Gender in Modern Greek: Dr Angeliki Alvanoudi to give online seminar

The aim of the seminar is to examine the role of Greek gendered terms in sustaining social gender ideologies that reinforce sexism.

You May Also Like

Pikos team up with Mastrocostas family on $620m riverfront ‘Gaia’ project in Brisbane 

Luxury developer Pikos Group has broken ground on its second riverfront project in Brisbane in as many years with Gaia.

Doctors’ aid group head Christos Christou urges Australia to sanction Israel

Doctors Without Borders President Dr Christos Christou has slammed the Australian government for supplying arms to Israel.

NSW Police pay tribute to Probationary Constable Tim Macarounas

NSW Police has marked National Police Remembrance Day by paying tribute to Probationary Constable Tim Macarounas.