Turkish Ambassador to Athens: Mutually beneficial solutions to longstanding problems based on international law

A message of cooperation was sent by the Turkish Ambassador to Athens, Çağatay Erciyes, addressing the reception for the 101 years of the Turkish Republic on Tuesday evening.
“Türkiye and Greece are two neighboring countries and allies, connected by shared geography, history, culture, and, most importantly, a shared future,” the Ambassador said and stressed the importance of cooperation, especially now, as the region faces ongoing wars and other challenges.
“This spirit of cooperation is the direction our leaders are now actively pursuing,” he noted.
He pointed out that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Prime Minister Mitsotakis Kyriakos Mitsotakisa have met six times over the last 16 months. During this period, all dialogue channels have been reactivated, high-level contacts have increased, and numerous technical meetings have been held, while many joint cooperation projects have been initiated along with includingmutual support for each other’s candidacies in international organizations like UNSC, IMO and OSCE.
“Our cooperation has already produced tangible benefits in many areas such as economy, trade, investment, tourism, and culture,” he stressed, adding that this year, trade volume is expected to reach 6.2 billion dollars, with 1.2 million Turkish tourists visiting Greece and 700,000 Greek visitors to Türkiye.
He reminded that in the coming days, Turkish Foreign Minister, Hakan Fidan, will visit Athens, and next year, the next High-Level Cooperation Council meeting will be held in Ankara.
“This positive momentum we are building offers a unique opportunity to address all our outstanding and complex issues that have, in the past, led to tensions and crises. This is a challenging task as there are political, psychological and historical stumbling blocks that we need to overcome. Yet, I always believe that our problems are not insurmountable as long as we keep our lines of communication open,” the Ambassador stated and underlined:
“I am confident that through a sincere and meaningful dialogue based on international law and good neighborliness, respecting each other’s legitimate interests and rights, and drawing harmony rather than animosity from our shared history, we can find mutually beneficial solutions to all our longstanding problems.”
He concluded: “We remain committed to strengthening our relations with Greece and fostering a culture of cooperation that serves the best interests of both our nations and future generations.”