Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis spoke on the telephone with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Friday. It is the first direct communication between the two leaders after their meeting in December 2019.
Citing government sources, state-run news agency amna reports that Mitsotakis and Erdogan discussed
about the repercussions of the coronavirus pandemic and the efforts to deal with this, as well as about issues relating to the opening of borders and restoring tourist flows.
Mitsotakis and Erdogan agreed to keep bilateral channels of communication open.
According to reuters, another source said that the two leaders did not discuss high policy matters, but they did agree that tension is relatively high and that channels of communication must be restored.
“There cannot be a de-escalation of tensions if the two sides don’t talk,” the source added.
The phone call take place amid growing tension due to Turkey’s provocative behavior on every possible level.
It is not known if Mitsotakis or Erdogan picked up the phone and dialed the number.
So far, there has been only a statement by the Greek Prime Minister’s office and no statement by the office of the Turkish president.
