Turkish, Greek deputy FMs to hold meeting to boost ties

Turkish and Greek officials will hold a meeting on Wednesday as the two countries seek to revive stalled discussions for dialogue, the Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday.

The ministry said deputy foreign ministers of Türkiye and Greece, Ambassador Burak Akçapar and Konstantinos Fragkogiannis, respectively, will meet “in the context of the Positive Agenda dialogue” between the two countries.

“This will be the fourth meeting at the level of deputy ministers on the Positive Agenda initiative which was initially agreed upon between Minister of Foreign Affairs Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Greece Nikos Dendias in Ankara, in April 2021,” said the statement.

The two officials “plan to review the progress on the Joint Action Plan, which aims to develop bilateral relations on trade, economy, energy, transport, education, health and environment as well as societal relations.”

“Consultations are also foreseen on new cooperation areas that can be included in the process,” the statement added.

Türkiye and Greece have agreed to mutually support each other’s various candidacies as bilateral relations thaw in the wake of the earthquakes in Türkiye and the train crash in Greece, the countries’ top diplomats said on Monday.

Officials on both sides have been hailing “a positive atmosphere” taking over bilateral relations between the sides since the tragedies, aided by the outpouring of support and aid from ordinary Greeks and the welcome exhibited by local Turkish populace to Greek rescuers.

While it is unclear as to whether the breaking of ice could reach political levels, officials express it “should be considered for the normalization of ties.”