Mitsotakis: Greece's red lines are clearly delineated in talks with Turkiye

"We keep the channels of communication with Turkiye open, without deviating from our fixed national positions," Prime Minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, said on Thursday, in an interview with Skai TV.

"It is positive that we are talking and that the contacts with Turkiye have entered into a framework of normalcy. I consider it an important development that a significant improvement has been achieved in the last 15 months, i.e. there is zero delinquency in the Aegean. We have also made significant progress at the level of cooperation in migration, where flows are extremely limited. We cooperate well with Turkiye The visa facilitation agreement is also very important, as it increases the number of visitors to the Eastern Aegean islands. Greece's foreign policy has not changed in the last four years. We deal with Turkiye with confidence and with our own red lines strictly delineated, but also with strong armed forces. I welcome the fact that Turkiye has changed its stance and that we can agree that we can disagree peacefully," Mitsotakis noted. 

Regarding the marine parks, the prime minister stressed that "Greece, as a member of the European Union, has increased obligations regarding the protection of the environment. We have the marine park of Alonissos, I don't remember getting anyone's permission. Of course, the parks will be built within an area of Greek sovereignty. I wonder if a marine park in the Cyclades concerns Turkiye. I assure you that Greece comes to these discussions with its national line strictly demarcated. I make it clear that there is nothing behind the marine parks initiative other than to protect our marine ecosystem. I have no illusion that Turkiye has changed its fixed positions regarding the Aegean and its view that there may be more differences than the delimitation of the EEZ which is the only difference that Greece recognizes." 

AMNA