Greek President Ekaterini Sakellaropoulou meets Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Athens (Anatolia)
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan expressed hope to usher in a "new era" in relations with Greece, during his first visit to the Greek capital Athens on Thursday since 2017.
Erdogan told his counterpart Ekaterini Sakellaropoulou that "I believe that the meeting of strategic cooperation between Turkey and Greece will lead to a new era" in relations between the two countries, adding, "We have to be optimistic, and this optimism will be fruitful in the future."
The Turkish president is expected to discuss a five-hour visit, during which he will meet with Sakellaropoulou and Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, on trade, regional issues and migration.
Anadolu Agency reported that the Turkish delegation accompanying Erdogan included Foreign Ministers Hakan Fidan, Treasury and Finance Mehmet Şimşek, Interior Ali Yerlikaya, and Defense Minister Yasar Guler. The visit came at the invitation of the Greek Prime Minister.
On Wednesday, the statement of the Turkish Presidency's Communication Department said that President Erdogan and Mitsotakis will chair the fifth meeting of the Turkish-Greek High-Level Cooperation Council.
The statement added that the meeting will discuss Turkish-Greek relations at all levels, ways to develop relations between the two neighboring countries, and exchange views on regional and international issues.
Erdogan said yesterday that his country had never seen its neighbor Greece as an enemy or adversary, and that there were no unsolvable problems with its neighbors.
Relations between the two countries have been strained in recent years over maritime borders and territorial waters.
Source : Al Jazeera + Agencies