“We are not heterogeneous and not identified by Turkey”
Interview with Action 24 TV station was given by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, George Gerapetritisin which he confirmed, inter alia, that there will be a meeting of the Greek Prime Minister and the Turkish President on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York, at a time that has not yet been determined.
However, Mr Gerapetritis estimated that the meeting would take place between September 22-26 and would not be, as he said, “simply, ceremonial, like none of the meetings of the two leaders in the past.”
“We are pursuing a structured dialogue,” the Minister underlined, adding that “Turkey’s claims could not be underestimated.”
The debate moved to the following key axes: Greek -Turkish relations, the Greece -Cyprus electric interconnection, the functional relationship with Libya and the Turkolibyy Memorandum, developments in the Sinai Monastery, the War in Ukraine and Palestinian.
In detail, on the occasion of the statements of his Turkish counterpart, Mr Gerapetritis said that “we have worked lately to embrace a functional relationship with elementary confidence with Turkey, but we have different positions.”
“In a new geostrategic backdrop, Greece controls the issues in its neighborhood, We are not heterogeneous and we are not identified by Turkey, but we do not accept advice from our neighborhood. The initiative belongs to us with the aim of reinforcing our country, “the foreign minister said.
About the work of the Greece-Cyprus electrical interconnectionMr. Gerapetritis made it clear that the project will continue because it is European and described it very important because it removes the energy isolation of Cyprus.
He emphasized that despite Turkey’s reactions, the first phase of research was completed, and as he said, “There will be consequences if the cables are hindered.”. Regarding the timetable of the work, he said that “the exact date has not yet been determined is something that should be done in collaboration with the company, its extent is infinitely higher than any other project, covering a very large area in the Eastern European maritime area, which must be issued by NAVTE Next time. “
The Foreign Minister also stressed that at the same time, violations of the national airspace and irregular migratory flows to the Aegean have been minimized, thanks to a structured relationship with Turkey, “without ignoring our substantive differences.”
Asked about the Turkish Memorandum, Mr. Gerapetritis said that “We have managed not to be ratified by the Memorandum by the Eastern Libyan Parliament, and our country is talking to both the country’s two leaderships.” He added that we were able to control migratory flows and stressed that “with Egypt we have excellent neighborhood, brotherly relationship, with common interests.”
For the Sinai Monastery, the Foreign Minister noted that there are two dimensions: the ecclesiastical and the one concerning the existence of the monastery. “The Greek government is trying to have as low as possible in the ecclesiastics that the Church should resolve. We believe that in the immediate future the situation, which was not normal, will be normalized. That is, we will have a single leadership in the monastery. Although it is a 15 centuries -old monastery, there has never been a regulation to provide for its special legal status, it is considered a common antiquity. Now with the discussion between the Egyptian-Greece governments, we are trying to find a new way, so that the monastery has the necessary entity to continue as a Greek Orthodox Monastery, with the regulation of the Egyptian State, which will recognize rights in the monastery and ensure the Greek -Orthodox character of the monastery and its continuation of the monastery and its continuation of the monastery.“, Said Mr Gerapetritis, who estimated that there would be younger in the coming weeks.
For the Ukrainian, he said that “we are experiencing a mutation of the geopolitical game. Greece has to keep a robust position, as we have done from the first moment in favor of the defendant, in favor of international law, against revisionism, against border change.. We will not participate in military security guarantees in favor of Ukraine, we will participate in reconstruction and humanitarian campaigns in the context of international law without asterisks. “
On the Palestinian, the Foreign Minister said: “There is a humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza. A humanitarian disaster and unfortunately the plans that exist for settlements on the West Bank do not help, and that is why we who have an excellent relationship with Israel are able to explicitly convey this message. Every opportunity should be exhausted to stop hostilities immediately. To restore the humanitarian flow of aid, to return the hostages unconditionally, and to exist in the context of the political solution, the establishment of the Palestinian state. Greece is a pioneer in the humanitarian aid without advertising it and with our own initiatives in the EU and the UN, very important assistance has been given. “
Concerning the recognition of the Palestinian state by Greece, he made it clear that the issue of recognition is a matter of decades. He emphasized that it is clear that Greece will recognize the state of Palestine, but we do not know when this will happen and what it will have. While he said that the recognition of the Palestinian state should be linked to a process of political solution by interruption of hostilities in the solution of the two states.
“At this juncture, what should be done, is to give a vision to the Palestinian people. Those who argue in recognition here and now should think of the broader geopolitical consequences and whether this will be beneficial, “concluded Mr. Gerapetritis.