Greek Prime Minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, and Turkish President, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, held a 45-minute meeting at the UN headquarters in New York on Wednesday morning (local time.) The Greek-Turkish relations, the Cyprus issue, migration flows and the EU-Turkey agreement and other bilateral issues were on the agenda. It was the first meeting between the two leaders.
Mitsotakis expressed his support for the Republic of Cyprus in the Cyprus issue, as well as President Nicos Anastasiadis’ proposal to secure a fair share for both communities on the island from the exploitation of Cyprus’s natural wealth, government sources told media.
The same sources said the meeting was held in a good climate, with many personal references by the two leaders.
All major issues were discussed, from refugees/migrants to the Cyprus issue as well as purely bilateral issues, with an emphasis on boosting Greece-Turkey economic and trade relations. They agreed “on the close cooperation of the two governments to build a better climate for the benefit of both peoples and stability in the region.”
It was also decided that the Greek-Turkish High Council of Cooperation would soon be activated and that the Foreign Ministers were in charge. Greek FM Nikos Dendias and his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu make the necessary preparations.
Regarding the flows of refugees and migrants, it was agreed to make every effort to restrict flows to both the Turkish coast and the sea.
Prime Minister Mitsotakis raised the issue of the reopening of the Theological School of Halki. The same sources said the issue which is being considered favorably by the Turkish side.
From the Turkish side, the well-known issues concerning the Muslim minority in Western Thrace and the two Ottoman monuments in Athens and Thessaloniki were raised. [via greeknewsonline]
PS Erdogan mostly agrees in diplomatic meetings, then he goes home and forgets his good manners…
