Turkey’s European future discussed in Greece

Greece’s Alternate Foreign Minister George Katrougalos and Turkish Economy Minister Nihat Zeybekci met in Athens on Friday in an effort to ‘defrost’ relations between the two countries by promoting economic relations.

The two ministers discussed issues relating to a new ferry connection between Thessaloniki and Izmir and the organisation of a business forum in Izmir in the autumn.

According to a foreign ministry announcement, there was discussion about Turkey's European prospects, which Athens supports on the grounds that a European Turkey will benefit its own people, the EU and good neighbour relations in the region, with the obvious proviso that there is respect for the European acquis, democracy and human rights.

The meeting also touched on the EU-Turkey customs union agreement and related issues.

A revision of the EU-Turkey customs union agreement was similarly at the centre of a meeting between Zeybekci and Greece's Economy and Development Minister Dimitri Papadimitriou, while they also discussed bilateral economic and trade relations. Papadimitriou outlined the government's plan for attracting investments and underlined Greece's interest in promoting economic relations between the two countries.