Mitsotakis–Erdogan meeting in New York today: Agenda items and points of conflict

A twelvemonth aft their past brushwood successful New York — and successful a precise antithetic planetary situation pursuing Donald Trump’s predetermination — Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Recep Tayyip Erdogan conscionable contiguous astatine the “House of Turkey,” with talks scheduled to past astir 30 minutes. Whether the gathering extends further remains uncertain, arsenic mentation tin lengthen discussions, but this marks the archetypal high-level Greek–Turkish interaction since September past twelvemonth and represents a notable waypoint successful regional geopolitics.

Joining the 2 leaders are Foreign Ministers Giorgos Gerapetritis and Hakan Fidan, who already support regular dialogue, on with their diplomatic advisers Milton Nikolaidis and Akif Çağatay Kılıç. The ambiance betwixt Athens and Ankara has shifted: wherever expectations erstwhile ran higher, relations present remainder connected “controlled tension.” Turkey is repositioning itself crossed aggregate fronts portion seeking introduction into European defence programs specified arsenic SAFE, an effort Greece is poised to artifact truthful agelong arsenic Ankara maintains its menace of warfare — the enduring casus belli.

Mitsotakis, however, does not question escalation. His purpose is to support channels unfastened with Erdogan, adjacent arsenic Athens insists the Greek–Turkish halfway quality implicit the continental support remains disconnected the table. Still, Ankara views caller Greek moves — from marine spatial readying and marine parks to caller vigor agreements, including Chevron’s licenses and revived practice with Western Libya — arsenic provocations.

Dialogue, not pseudo-patriotism
Government spokesperson Pavlos Marinakis emphasized up of the acme that Athens pursues dialogue, not confrontation. “This authorities has chosen to turn Greece with policies that present results. It has chosen dialog with Turkey, not the pseudo-patriotism that weakens Greece. Sovereignty issues stay non-negotiable,” helium said. The authorities besides seeks to task assurance contempt the forthcoming Erdogan–Trump gathering connected the 25th, pointing to however Greece’s planetary lasting has shifted dramatically since 2019.

Cyprus first
Before Erdogan, Mitsotakis volition conscionable with Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides. At the apical of their docket is the GSI cablegram project, the planned Greece–Cyprus–Israel energy interconnection. Confusion successful Nicosia’s messaging has unsettled Athens, and Mitsotakis wants clarity from a counterpart with whom helium maintains adjacent ties.

Full docket successful New York
The premier minister’s calendar besides includes meetings with Azerbaijan’s President Aliyev, Sierra Leone’s President Maada Bio, Yemen’s President Rashad Al-Alimi, and Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew. Later contiguous (early greeting Athens time), Mitsotakis volition be the reception hosted by President Trump for satellite leaders astatine the UN General Assembly.