Turkey declared its readiness to reduce escalation in the eastern Mediterranean, strengthen its relations with the European Union and start dialogue with Greece without conditions, but stressed the need to respect its sovereignty, while French President Emmanuel Macron threatened Turkey with European sanctions if it did not stop the "confrontation" policy.

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said during a session of the Foreign Relations Committee of the European Parliament in Brussels that his country is ready to reduce the escalation in the eastern Mediterranean and strengthen its relations with the European Union.

Cavusoglu added, "We understand the solidarity between the countries of the European Union, but we do not accept that this is at the expense of our sovereignty and our rights. Let me confirm that we are ready to negotiate and dialogue with Greece and the European Union without preconditions."

The Turkish minister affirmed that his country had previously demanded a fair distribution of energy resources in the eastern Mediterranean, saying, “We tried this and it did not succeed. Turkey was excluded from all initiatives and its rights, and now we have no choice but to take unilateral steps, and again, as President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said, we are ready.” To sit down and talk about clear sharing with all countries that have shores on the Mediterranean. "

On the other hand, Greek Minister of European Affairs Militades Varvitsiots said that possible measures against Turkey include the possibility of imposing sanctions.

The Greek minister called for setting a clear time frame during the European summit scheduled for the 24th of this month in Brussels to end the crisis and resolve all outstanding issues for years.

Macron with the Prime Minister of Greece at the summit (Reuters)

Southern European Summit


At the conclusion of a summit of the European Union countries in the Mediterranean hosted by the French island of Corsica on Thursday evening, Macron told the heads of state and government of the seven states, Discussed in the European Council. "

Reciting the closing statement of the summit that includes France, Greece, Italy, Spain, Cyprus, Malta and Portugal, he added that if Ankara does not comply with these conditions and “refuses to listen to the logic,” European leaders will have no other option but to impose “heavy sanctions” on it.

The French President stressed "the desire to initiate a responsible dialogue and find ways to balance (...) without any naivety" and "good faith."

Macron denounced "a game of hegemony practiced by historical powers" in the Mediterranean, Libya and Syria, calling Turkey as well as Russia, and called for the establishment of a "Mediterranean peace."

Prior to the summit, Macron called on European countries to speak with a voice indicating more "unity and clarity" towards Turkey, which is "no longer a partner" in the eastern Mediterranean, considering that Ankara is carrying out "unacceptable" behavior today.

Turkey's response was not late, accusing the French President in a statement by the Foreign Ministry of "endangering" the interests of Europe, and said that "Macron made again rude statements, with an old colonial thought."

For his part, European Union Security and Foreign Policy Officer Josep Borrell stressed the need for all parties to engage in good faith in the immediate easing of the crisis in the eastern Mediterranean, during a phone call with United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

Borrell called on the parties to the crisis to follow a clear path that leads to stability and durable solutions away from unilateral measures.

Denying a military meeting


On the other hand, Greece denied that its delegation discussed "methods of conflict resolution" with a Turkish military delegation during the technical meeting at the headquarters of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), and denied that there was an exchange of views during a meeting to discuss measures aimed at preventing possible military interventions between Military items.

This came after the Turkish Defense Ministry announced the end of the technical meeting between the military delegations of Turkey and Greece at NATO headquarters in Brussels, explaining that views had been exchanged.