Erdogan says Turkey and Greece able to resolve disputes

AFP , Thursday 7 Dec 2023

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on a visit to Athens on Thursday that Ankara had the will to resolve all outstanding disputes with its historic rival Greece.

Greece s Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, right, makes statements with Turkey s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan after their meeting at Maximos Mansion in Athens, Greece, Thursday, Dec. 7, 2023. AP

"There is no problem that cannot be solved between us," Erdogan said during a media appearance with Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, adding that he wanted to turn "the Aegean into a sea of peace and cooperation."

Erdogan was in Athens for the first time since 2017 after a long period of tension marked by spats over migration, energy exploration in the Aegean and territorial sovereignty.

Mitsotakis acknowledged in a joint statement that relations had been "dangerously threatened" in the past but were now on a "calmer path."

"I feel a historic debt to utilise the opportunity to bring the two nations side by side, as are our borders," Mitsotakis said.

Athens had agreed with the European Union to extend seven-day visas to Turkish citizens to visit Aegean islands, he said.

Greece and Turkey also signed a declaration of friendship and will work towards doubling their bilateral trade to $10 billion (9.3 billion euros).