The Turks may seem to have... the belt loosened for a fight, but in the international background, it seems that the situation that is taking shape in the Aegean has raised an alarm in the international factor.[/B] And today will be a very important day, as in two international fora the foreign and defence ministers of Greece and Turkey[/B] will be on the same stage.
Starting with North Macedonia, Nikos Dendias will be at the Ohrid Dialogue Forum today, where Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu has confirmed his presence. A bilateral meeting has not been scheduled and is not expected to take place in this environment, but some kind of contact between the two ministers, even if standing, with Mr. Dendias has certain things in mind that he wants to convey to his counterpart in order to bring the tones down, such as that it is imperative that the tones come down, as Turkey is flirting with a hot episode, which nobody wants.
In a similar vein, Defense Minister Nikos Panagiotopoulos, who has completed his necessary quarantine for coronavirus and will travel today to attend the NATO ministerial meeting in Brussels. There he has two appointments scheduled so far, one with German Defence Minister Christine Lambrecht, in order to discuss the German armoured tanks that our country will receive next time, and with his new French counterpart, the just 35-year-old Sebastien Lecorneu. But Turkish Defence Minister Houloussi Akar will also be in Brussels, and the summit may be an opportunity for face-to-face contact, as Akar in yesterday's statements appeared eager for a discussion with Panagiotopoulos, and Panagiotopoulos in turn wants to send a message to Ankara about the need to put the knife in the sheath.
International concern
At the same time, according to reliable information from protothema.gr, there is an alarm within NATO about the flare-up in the Southeastern Wing, with Turkey at fault and despite Athens' clear red line to Ankara not to raise the issue of demilitarization of islands. According to protothema.gr, the message about the need not to disturb the unity and stability within NATO was also conveyed to Turkey at the meeting that took place the day before yesterday afternoon in Berlin at the level of diplomatic office directors.
According to protothema.gr, the message about the need not to disturb the unity and stability within NATO was also conveyed to Turkey at the meeting that took place the day before yesterday afternoon in Berlin. On the Turkish side there was Ibrahim Kalin, Mr Erdogan's secret adviser, and: Jake Sullivan, US security adviser, the German adviser to the Chancellor and former ambassador to Athens Jens Plettner, the British security adviser Stephen Lavgrove and the director of the French Foreign Ministry Philippe Herrera.
In fact, prior to this meeting, Athens is reported to have conveyed to key foreign capitals the need to restore order in the Aegean and to avoid triggering a climate of tension, which could escalate at any time. Indeed, the need for stability is considered a top priority ahead of the NATO Summit on 29 and 30 June in Madrid, as the major capitals do not want turmoil within the Alliance while the war in Ukraine continues to rage. It remains to be seen, of course, what the response will be from Turkey, which is bargaining heavily against the backdrop of Sweden and Finland joining, while the US and EU countries want the Alliance to be enlarged to include the two Scandinavian countries.
Source: protothema.gr
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