Athens, Nicosia coordinate action on seized Greek tankers

Greek Foreign Affairs Minister Nikos Dendias said he spoke with Cypriot counterpart Ioannis Kasoulides to coordinate on a wide range of issues including on the seizure of two Greek-flagged ships by Iran in the Gulf.

Iran’s paramilitary Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has warned that more Greek tankers currently in the Persian Gulf could be seized amid a row over the confiscation of Iranian oil by the United States from a tanker held off Greece’s coast

Athens and Nicosia have called for the release of the ships and their crews, with Greece denouncing the seizure as an act of piracy.

Seperately, Dendias will be visiting Bosnia-Herzegovina on Tuesday for meetings with the country’s political leadership. He will first meet with his counterpart Dr. Bisera Turkovic, followed by joint statements to the press at around 11.45 a.m. local time.

The Greek minister will then meet with the President of the country’s Ministerial Council Zoran Tegeltija, a meeting followed by an official dinner. Afterwards Dendias will meet with Chair of the Tri-Presidency of Bosnia & Herzegovina Sefik Dzaferovic at 1 p.m., and also with members Zeljko Komsic at 1.50 p.m. and Milorad Dodik at 4.30 p.m. Finally, Dendias will meet with Deputy Foreign Minister Josip Brkic, and with Mayor of Sarajevo Benjamina Karic.

According to a statement by the Greek foreign ministry, talks are expected to focus on strengthening bilateral co-operation, on the European perspective of the Western Balkans, on the South East European Cooperation Process (SEECP) Summit, on regional security and stability, as well as on broader regional developments, including the situation in Ukraine after the Russian invasion.

[Kathimerini, AMNA]