Tensions shadow Mitsotakis-Erdogan talks

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis (right) and Recep Tayyip Erdogan (left) during a gathering successful Athens successful December 2023. [Dimitris Papamitsos/Prime Minister's Office/AMNA]

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis is acceptable to conscionable Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan successful New York connected Tuesday successful what officials picture arsenic the astir hard infinitesimal successful bilateral relations successful much than two years.

Expectations for the talks stay low, with Ankara showing small involvement successful resolving disputes successful the Aegean and Eastern Mediterranean.

Foreign Ministers George Gerapetritis and Hakan Fidan, on with diplomatic advisers Milton Nikolaidis and Cagatay Kilic, will articulation the meeting. Both sides look intent connected preserving what Athens calls the “calm waters” of the past 26 months, though tensions person precocious resurfaced. Less than 10 days ago, Turkey announced plans to nonstop the probe vessel Piri Reis into the cardinal Aegean, accompanied by Navtex notices reiterating Ankara’s stance that eastbound Aegean islands stay demilitarized.

Mitsotakis is expected to rise the Greece-Cyprus energy interconnection, analyzable by some Athens-Nicosia disagreements and European involvement. He has besides pledged to code Turkey’s information successful the EU’s defence inaugural SAFE, linking support to Ankara’s withdrawal of its casus belli against Greece. The contented is fraught, arsenic Turkey has already deepened ties with European defence industries.

Athens is progressively acrophobic astir Turkey’s efforts to beforehand its “Blue Homeland” doctrine successful the Eastern Mediterranean. Recent moves see courting Libyan strongman Khalifa Haftar and his sons to unafraid ratification of the Turkey-Libya maritime accord, and improving ties with Egypt, aided by Ankara’s anti-Israel stance.

Greece has responded with organization initiatives such arsenic maritime spatial readying and promoting marine parks successful the Aegean. Officials besides stress Chevron’s involvement successful exploration south of Crete arsenic a awesome of sovereign rights protection, though questions stay astir US vigor engagement successful Libyan waters.

The gathering besides comes up of Erdogan’s scheduled visit to Washington, conscionable two days aft Mitsotakis.

Analysts successful Athens accidental Erdogan’s US trip, including his bid to get F-35 combatant jets, has constricted Ankara’s appetite for provocative actions successful the Aegean. Greek officials note, however, that US President Donald Trump would look important hurdles successful securing Senate support for such a deal.