Kouvelis strikes different stance to Kammenos on Greek soldiers

Alternate Defense Minister Fotis Kouvelis on Wednesday differentiated his stance on Turkey’s detention of two Greek soldiers from that of Defense Minister Panos Kammenos who last week referred to the two men as “hostages.”

“I think exaggerated rhetoric as expressed from various sides, about hostages, captivity and all the rest does not contribute towards our goal,” Kouvelis told ANT1 television channel.

“What we want, and it appears that we have achieved, is to keep the matter at the level of a judicial case at the court of Edirne,” he said.

Asked to comment on Kammenos’s use of language, Kouvelis said he believed the former was trying to underline the delay in resolving what should have been treated as a minor incident. 

Kouvelis added that Greece has sent to Turkey a technical expert who is to participate in the examination of the solders’ cellphones which were confiscated by Turkish authorities after the pair accidentally crossed the border earlier this month.