Ayhan Simsek
19 December 2022•Update: 19 December 2022
BERLIN
Germany wants to facilitate dialogue between Türkiye and Greece, the chancellor’s spokesman said on Monday.
Speaking at a news conference in Berlin, German government spokesman Steffen Hebestreit confirmed that the senior officials of the three countries had held a meeting in Brussels.
“Germany had conveyed messages earlier, asked whether we could be helpful for such a meeting, and both the Greek prime minister and the Turkish president responded very positively to this,” he said.
Hebestreit also said further meetings are expected, but declined to give any details, stressing that the content of the discussions was confidential.
The meeting in Brussels brought together Turkish presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalin, German Chancellery Foreign and Security Policy Adviser Jens Ploetner, and Greek Prime Ministry Diplomatic Office Director Anna-Maria Boura, after weeks-long tensions between Ankara and Athens.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz visited Athens in October and called for closer dialogue between NATO allies Türkiye and Greece to solve bilateral problems and de-escalate tensions in the Mediterranean.
He said good neighborly relations between Ankara and Athens are vital not only for the two countries but also for Europe and NATO.
Türkiye, a NATO member for over 70 years, has complained of repeated provocative actions and rhetoric by Greece in the region in recent months, including arming islands near Turkish shores that are demilitarized under treaty obligations. Ankara says that such moves frustrate its good-faith efforts for peace.
