Ankara decision on train crash victim’s father a positive sign

Ankara’s decision not only to allow the imprisoned father of an off-duty train driver who was killed in last week’s deadly rail accident in central Greece to attend his son’s funeral, but also to serve the rest of his sentence in a Greek prison was seen in Athens as another indication of the significant improvement in Greek-Turkish relations. 

This thaw was reflected in the discussion between Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias and his counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu on Monday. The fact that the issue of the imprisoned father was discussed at the highest diplomatic level and not through the typical channels of communication involving judicial, prison or police authorities is seen to demonstrate a willingness to set some positive precedent, even if only symbolically.

An effort is always ongoing to advance the so-called “positive agenda,” which although innocuous, also reflects the more positive outlook. To this end, Deputy Foreign Minister for Economic Diplomacy Kostas Fragogiannis recently met with Cavusoglu in Doha.