‘We deconstruct Turkey’s unfounded claims with a series of arguments’, Foreign Minister Dendias says

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Resolving disputes between countries “can be achieved only on the basis of respect for the fundamental principles of International Law,” noted Foreign Affairs Minister Nikos Dendias in an interview to Naftemboriki newspaper on Saturday.

One such key fundamental principle “is the protection of territorial sovereignty of all states,” he added.

Dendias observed that “we are facing an unprecedented escalation of Turkish provocations” and at the same time “an occasional escalation in the field, where the neo-Ottoman revisionism is projected upon.”

During this escalation, he underlined, “we respond strongly, but calmly” and stressed that “through a series of arguments we deconstruct, one by one, the unfounded and non-existent allegations of the Turkish side”.

However, Greece “is sincere when it voices its intention to keep the channels of communications with Ankara open,” he underlined.

The issue of Turkish provocations will be put forth anew at the upcoming European Council meeting next week, said the Greek minister.

Referring to Greece-Russia relations, Dendias noted that when the government of Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis came to power 3 years ago, “relations [with Russia] were at a rather mediocre level” and that “we made great efforts to restore a level of mutual understanding with a country with which we have historical, religious and cultural ties dating back centuries.”

But the Russian invasion and the war in Ukraine “interrupted the upward trajectory of our relations, and this happened not by our country’s responsibility.”

He then pointed out Greece’s leading role in the EU accession course of countries in the Western Balkans, calling it “a historical duty to help these countries progress along the path of reforms and economic growth.”

Asked about when will Greece’s collaboration memoranda with neighboring North Macedonia be ratified, Dendias said “when national interests and the Greek parliament’s schedule allow for it.”

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