"We are fully satisfied with the results of the EU summit," Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis stressed on Friday, in a press conference after the conclusion of an extraordinary European Council in Brussels.
"It is clear, as reflected in paragraph 20, that if Turkey continues its unilateral belligerent behavior there will be consequences," continued Mitsotakis, adding that "in this case, the EU will use all the tools at its disposal to defend its interests. The developments will be monitored and any decisions will be taken by the end of December," he said.
He noted that paragraph 16 of the summit conclusions state that the exploratory contacts with Turkey are exclusively confined to the issue of delimitating the maritime zones in the Aegean and the Eastern Mediterranean, while adding: "There is also the positive agenda. We would like to have a constructive and good relationship with Turkey, provided that the terms for this are met."
Referring to Cyprus, he noted that there were clear references to issues concerning Cyprus and a clear condemnation of Turkish aggressiveness.
Mitsotakis noted that it was a difficult negotiation, adding: "The final text is substantially different from the initial one. I believe we arrived at a very good text for Greece, Cyprus, for Europe and for EU-Turkish relations".
Greece prepared to take difference with Turkey to ICJ
Greece is prepared to refer its difference with Turkey to the International Court of Justice at The Hague, if the two sides are unable to reach an agreement, and to accept the ruling of the court, Mitsotakis reiterated on Friday. "I hope that at some point these discussions will bring a tangible result," he said.
Concerning the second day of the Summit, he said the EU leaders had dedicated three hours to the issue of Covid. "There is concern, Greece is still doing better than other countries. There is extreme concern on all sides about how we can keep our economies open while containing the virus and how we can have better cooperation," he said.
"Another issue is the vaccines, where the EU has made significant progress. There are also other sectors in which we can achieve a better cooperation framework. One of them concerns trips within the EU. And we also have a new tool at our disposal, which are none other than the reliable 'rapid' tests," Mitsotakis noted, saying this could be used to make travel easier.
"Finally, we also discussed Brexit, which is an issue on the next EU Summit's agenda," he said.
Greece, Cyprus proposals were 'imperative, balanced and appropriate'
PM Mitsotakis welcomed on Friday the establishment of a military de-confliction mechanism by NATO to reduce incidents and accidents in the Eastern Mediterranean between Greece and Turkey, during the press conference in Brussels.
He said that by agreeing to a hotline mechanism, Turkey had committed to respecting international laws, a point underlined by the Greek National Defense Ministry on Thursday following NATO's announcement. No meeting between defense leaders from the two countries has been set yet, he said, but it is more likely to have the Greek-Turkish exploratory talks begin first "to get a sense of the situation in our relations, and then look at a timetable for political contacts."
source: ANA-MPA
