Newly appointed Foreign Minister, Nikos Dendias, made his first official trip to …Washington for a meeting with US counterpart Mike Pompeo.
Dendias invited Pompeo to visit Athens in the autumn for the second Strategic Dialogue between Greece and the US, an invitation the US saw positively was likely to be accepted, the minister said in comments to the press.
“I am glad that one of my first meetings as Foreign Minister of the new Greek government was with my US counterpart Mike Pompeo,” Dendias said, and added that “we all know that the close relationship between Greece and the United States has a long history, but it is particularly interesting to deepen and extend this relationship every time” there is a new meeting.
“We talked about the strategic dialogue between the two countries, the deepening of this dialogue, as well as an outline of other issues included in this dialogue,” noted the Greek minister.
While discussing current geopolitical developments in the Aegean and the East Mediterranean region, Dendias focused on the Turkish stance against the sovereign rights of both the Republic of Cyprus and Greece.
“We requested of the US a clear line of communication, in the event of any issue concerning our relations with Turkey, where an explicit and direct response by the US could be useful,” Dendias highlighted. He added that “the Americans took note and will respond to us.”
In this context, Dendias explained that the Greek side urged the US to keep a strance of clear support to Greece concerning Turkey’s attitude.
The minister said that they also discussed energy issues and cooperation with Cyprus and Israel, in the framework of this tripartite relationship, as well as in cooperation with Egypt.”
State Department: Greece pillar of stability in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Balkans
Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo met with newly appointed Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias to reaffirm the importance of U.S.-Greek relations. Secretary Pompeo highlighted the strong bilateral defense and security partnership, noting Greece’s role as a pillar of stability in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Balkans. The Secretary commended Greece for its progress on energy projects to expand regional interconnectivity. Secretary Pompeo and Foreign Minister Dendias reaffirmed their shared commitment to advancing religious freedom and agreed to continue progress made in key areas since the December 2018 Strategic Dialogue.
I had a good conversation with Greek Foreign Minister @NikosDendias. Greece is a pillar of stability in the Eastern Mediterranean and Balkans and an important @NATO Ally. We look forward to continuing to working closely together to promote stability & prosperity in the region. pic.twitter.com/MaqOqK44rz
— Secretary Pompeo (@SecPompeo) July 17, 2019
with info from [amna]
