Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan will meet in Ankara on Wednesday to talk bilateral and international issues.
According to CNN Greece, some agreements are expected, though not of major scope, mainly concerning cooperation on migration and civil protection.
Preparations indicate that, on international issues, the two leaders will discuss developments in the Middle East, Iran, Syria and Ukraine.
Athens is ready for Erdoğan to raise the issue of Turkey’s participation in the EU’s defence spending programme ‘SAFE’ following pushback from Greece, as well as the issue of Israel, in light of the close Athens-Tel Aviv relationship.
According to CNN Greece, the Greek PM is expected to raise Turkey’s recent “erratic” behaviour, such as the concept of announcing a permanent maritime notice (NAVTEX). However, the priority for the Greek side is to maintain and, if possible, expand the channels between the two countries.
As a gesture of goodwill before the tete-a-tete, Turkey backed down from implementing an air-naval exercise they had planned.
Athens is watching with interest whether Ankara will refer to the delimitation of maritime zones and in what “package” it will place them. Turkey’s Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan recently spoke of a “historic opportunity for a permanent solution to the Aegean problem.”
Asked on Monday by CNN Türk whether he believes the meeting with Mitsotakis will create momentum that could resolve problems with Greece, Fidan replied: “I sincerely believe that both Prime Minister Mitsotakis and Foreign Minister Giorgos Gerapetritis have the intention and the ability to solve this problem, that is, to take the matter even further, but… the domestic political environment… political competition unfortunately does not create an environment conducive to resolving such strategic problems in Greek politics.”
As he said, leaders are often faced with the dilemma between settling historic issues and the political cost this entails. Fidan added that Turkey is trying to make the task easier for future leaders by putting forward “more creative and progressive proposals,” both in formal and informal meetings.
Ankara is also expected to raise the issue of the customs union with the EU. “Our President will definitely put it on the agenda,” the Turkish FM revealed.
Referring to the visa issue, he hinted that “one or two opponents” within the EU are blocking progress. “We will improve our position on the basis of candidate-country status and we will deal with the one or two opponents within, especially in the Greek Cypriot part of Cyprus, perhaps with different solutions,” he said.
The choreography
The meeting will take place at Erdoğan’s Ankara complex, also known as Ak Saray (the White Palace). The presidential palace, built in an Ottoman–Seljuk style on a wooded part of the capital, covers 150,000 square metres and, characteristically, you need a vehicle to get around.
The Mitsotakis-Erdoğan meeting is scheduled for midday Wednesday, and the one-on-one meeting is expected to include the two foreign ministers, Gerapetritis and Fidan, as well as diplomatic advisers Milton Nicolaïdis and Akif Çağatay Kılıç, a central figure in Turkish foreign policy and security.
The meeting is expected to take place in the main building of the presidential complex, the Cumhurbaşkanlığı Sarayı, with more than 1,000 rooms, located at the top of the hill.
Transnational crime, migration and Gülenists
Issues expected to be on the table include strengthening Greece-Turkey cooperation in tackling organised transnational crime and managing migration flows. It was recently agreed to launch joint operations against drugs and all forms of smuggling, while Athens is particularly concerned about organised crime involving Turkish nationals. Athens has already proposed to Ankara the use of European and international channels such as Europol and Interpol, as well as creating a dedicated direct communication line for identifying detained Turkish nationals.
Ankara remains consistently concerned about attempts by “Gülenists” to flee to Greece.
On migration, the incident on Chios will be discussed, but CNN Greece reports that Turkey is cooperating away from the public spotlight. Flows from the Turkish coast have dropped dramatically compared with January 2025 (3,000 last year, 800 this year), and whenever the Turkish coast guard is notified to intervene upon spotting migrant boats near their shores, it does so. Athens, however, insists Ankara should implement the returns agreement, which it says Turkey is turning a blind eye to.
Source: cnn.gr