Greek president tells Turkey’s Erdogan no treaty revision

Greek President Prokopis Pavlopoulos on Thursday ruled out a revision of an international treaty defining the borders of Greece and Turkey.

”The Treaty of Lausanne defines the territory and the sovereignty of Greece and of the European Union and this treaty is for us non-negotiable.

“It has no flaws, it does not need to be reviewed, or to be updated,” Pavlopoulos said during a meeting with Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan, on a two day official visit to the neighbouring country.

In an interview with Kathimerini newspaper, Erdogan suggested a revision to the 1923 Treaty of Lausanne, which established the borders of modern-day Turkey.

In comments to Pavlopoulos Thursday, Erdogan said there were some details in the Lausanne Treaty which are not clear and that a lasting solution to issues in the Aegean and Cyprus was needed.

He said Muslims in the Greek border region of Western Thrace were not able to choose their own chief mufti, while Christian communities in Turkey enjoyed greater freedom to choose their patriarchs, suggesting the 1923 Lausanne treaty was not being applied fairly.

“How can we say Lausanne is in effect? Then Lausanne is not in effect. We need to prove Lausanne’s applicability by doing this,” he said.

In a tense back and forth between the two leaders, Erdogan also said Greece could not have entered the NATO without Turkey’s support.

[Reuters]