Hopes for normalisation of Greek-Turkish ties after Cavusoglu’s talks with Mitsotakis-Dendias

«As two neighbors, we are destined to live in the same geography. Therefore, we should define our relationship with cooperation rather than conflict. It is in our hands to determine our destiny and the way forward,» Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu declared on the eve of his talks today with Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias.

Though both sides have said the same innumerable times, it is indeed the essential backdrop of efforts to resolve bilateral issues and the confirmation of a 14 June meeting between Mitsotakis and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan suggests that both sides feel they have an interest in making this happen.

The main obstacle to an understanding has been the fact that over the decades Ankara has vastly expanded its claims against Greece, ranging from territorial claims such as the Imia islets to Turkey's vigorous efforts to encroach on Greece's (and Cyprus') Exclusive Economic Zone, most recently with the illegal delimitation of the EEZs of Libya and Turkey, which do not even border each other.

Cavusoglu's insistence that there must be no preconditions in bilateral talks makes clear that the Turkish side intends to pile up all its demands on the table, including the Muslim minority in Thrace, demilitarisation of Aegean islands, EEZ delimitation, airspace and territorial waters, and a two-state solution of the Cyprus problem.

Cavusoglu in an exclusive interview with To Vima left open the prospect of Greece and Turkey referring their differences to the International Court of Justice and stresses that this presupposes sweeping bilateral talks to pinpoint the issues that the Court would adjudicate.

The bilateral negotiations process is intimately connected with EU...