Remarkable statements by Mitsotakis after Erdoğan meeting
Micotakis' remarkable remarks after Erdoğan meeting Micotakis described his meeting with Erdoğan as "short but appropriate"; he did not comment on Trump contact and reacted harshly to the Libya agreement.
Greece 25 June 2025 158 Share Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis touched upon both bilateral contacts and regional issues in his statements following his brief meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on the sidelines of the NATO Summit in The Hague, Netherlands.
During the meeting, which lasted for about 10 minutes, it was learnt that the two leaders focused on determining a suitable date for the High Level Cooperation Council meeting.
In his evaluation after the summit, Mitsotakis stated that the contact with Erdoğan was "short but appropriate" and said "Our country is not defined by others". Avoiding to comment on Erdoğan's meeting with US President Donald Trump, Mitsotakis said, "I will not make an assessment of the Trump-Erdoğan meeting."
Miçotakis pointed out that the most important outcome of the NATO summit was the increase in defence expenditures and emphasized that Greece is among the exemplary countries in this regard. Explaining that his country is preparing to invest 28 billion euros in the defence industry, Mitsotakis said, "Greece is fulfilling the obligations of the Alliance. The American President should also be satisfied with this result." Referring to the discussions on NATO's Article 5, the Greek leader took a clear stance, saying, "Article 5 remains valid and this is the basis of the Alliance."
Stating that issues related to Libya were also on the agenda at the summit, Mitsotakis once again described the maritime jurisdiction agreement signed between Türkiye and Libya in 2019 as "unacceptable and devoid of legal basis".
Mitsotakis stated that they will demand the reinsertion of the statements that this agreement is illegal in the final declaration of the Council of Europe and that Greece will use all diplomatic and military means to stop the flow of irregular migration through Libya.
