Turkish Defence Minister, Hulusi Akar, claimed on Wednesday that the co-exploitation of the “riches of the Aegean” was raised in talks with his Greek counterpart, Nikos Panagiotopoulos, during a recent meeting in Brussels.
“We are holding our talks sincerely, openly, honestly and transparently,” Akar told journalists after NATO’s Extraordinary Meeting of Defense Ministers.
“This is important in terms of the prosperity of the people of the two countries and the sharing of the beauties and riches of the Aegean. There are tourism, fishing and many other riches. We are in favour of using these together, we said this.”
READ MORE: Greek and Turkish Defence Ministers meet in Brussels to discuss reducing tensions.
On Wednesday night, Panagiotopoulos denied this issue was even raised during his talk with Akar.
Athens attributed the claim by Ankara to communication manoeuvres by Akar, who, according to sources, is well aware that the content of the talks was mainly about the need to respect the moratorium, especially in the summer, when both countries expect tourism.
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