Athens Thursday denied NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg’s earlier statement that Greece and Turkey had agreed to “technical talks” to avoid military clashes in the region. The move, critics say, dashes hopes of a breakthrough in rising tension in the eastern Mediterranean.
Greek government spokesman Stelios Petsas said the NATO chief’s announcement did not correspond to reality. He said a series of conditions must first be met before Athens even begins to consider talks with Ankara.
”We want Turkey to abandon its provocative stance and come to the negotiating table with sincere interest. Negotiations cannot be held under threats and blackmail, the spokesman said.
Greece, Petsas said, will be neither terrorized or threatened — diplomatic longhand for a Greek ultimatum calling on Turkey to pull back an exploration ship it has sent to the eastern Mediterranean, near a cluster of Greek islands, to search for undersea oil and gas. Läs artikel
Läs även genomgång av de havsrättsliga frågorna mellan Grekland och Turkiet som tidigare publicerats på den här sajten.