PM says he expects meeting with Erdogan in the near future
Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis shared his view that a meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will take place in the near future, in an interview with Greek TV channel Alpha on Thursday.
“There will be a meeting with the Turkish President, but I am not in a position to say when. The meeting will happen because we need to communicate. I believe there will be a meeting in the near future,” he said before stating that a meeting between a Greek prime minister and a Turkish president should not be newsworthy.
Mitsotakis also praised the conduct of Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias during the recent press conference with his Turkish counterpart, Mevlut Cavusoglu. The prime minister stated that public confrontations are rare but can serve a purpose in establishing good relations.
“The mandate I had given was to not leave any challenge unanswered. The issues were put forward with honesty, with clarity. Relations between Greece and Turkey are relations between Europe and Turkey,” he said on the press conference, adding that International Law must be the only framework to solve any issues between the countries.
Mitsotakis also reiterated his plea for people to get vaccinated as soon as possible and brought up the possibility of mandatory vaccinations in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic. He said that after the summer, the leaders of the Greek political parties need to discuss the prospect of mandatory vaccinations for employees of certain sectors.
“I think a conversation on mandatory vaccination of some employees – especially those working in healthcare – must be had. This year or next year we may have to have a second shot. Then, we will have to hold this conversation,” he said.
