The meeting that Greek Minister of National Defence Nikos Panagiotopoulos had with his Turkish counterpart Hulusi Akar on the sidelines of the NATO Summit lasted forty minutes.
Although the meeting is considered not to have been long in duration considering the context in which it unfolded the need for the resumption of talks was underlined. Panagiotopoulos told his Turkish counterpart that provocations and hostile rhetoric must stop.
Panagiotopoulos and Akar were both without translators, reported Proto Thema, which means they communicated in English. The 40 minutes was reportedly beneficial for the discussion.
"The importance of maintaining open channels of communication and meetings between the two sides, and the need to create a climate of stability in the region, based on International Law and the rules of good neighbourliness, was underlined," the Greek Defence Ministry said in a statement.
Meanwhile, Panagiotopoulos also met with his US counterpart, Lloyd Austin "to discuss ongoing defense cooperation and the importance of regional stability."
I met today with Greek Minister of Defense Nikos Panagiotopoulos to discuss ongoing defense cooperation and the importance of regional stability. pic.twitter.com/0JNSd4dSSm
— Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III (@SecDef) October 13, 2022
It is recalled that on Wednesday, the Greek defence minister had a twenty-minute meeting with NATO Secretary Jens Stoltenberg, to whom he once again explained the situation in the Eastern Mediterranean.
Despite the fact that there was a detailed conversation and the meeting exceeded its planned duration, the Norwegian NATO chief did not cross his usual line of neutrality that has made him severely disliked in Athens.
Panagiotopoulos will also meet with his counterparts from Germany Christine Lambrechtt and France Sébastien Lecornu.
Stoltenberg welcomed the US Secretary of Defense to NATO Headquarters in Brussels on Thursday for meetings of Allied Defence Ministers. He thanked Secretary Austin for his strong personal leadership, as well as the US’ steadfast commitment to the Alliance, and its powerful support to Ukraine.
NATO Secretary General:
Secretary Austin, dear Lloyd, it's always a pleasure to see you here at NATO. And thank you so much for your commitment, for the commitment of the United States, to our transatlantic bond, to our transatlantic Alliance. And also thank you for your personal leadership and commitment to our efforts to support Ukraine. I welcome the unprecedented support the United States has delivered to Ukraine but also the unprecedented support that European Allies, Canada, and partners are providing to Ukraine. And I also think it is a very important message that NATO Allies and partners and the Ukraine Defence Contact Group that you chaired, delivered yesterday, that we will stand by Ukraine for as long as it takes. We will step up our support and, in particular, we will provide more air defence systems to Ukraine.
I also welcome the very strong message from the international community yesterday. The vote in the UN was a clear condemnation of the illegal annexation of Ukrainian territories and a clear call on Russian President Putin to reverse these decisions and to respect the territorial integrity of Ukraine. This just shows that we need to stand up for a rules-based international order for our core values. And again, the U.S. leadership in NATO, in the international community, is essential to this. So once again, welcome Lloyd.
US Secretary of Defence:
Good morning, everyone. It's great to be back here in Brussels and Jens, thanks for convening this ministerial, which is focused on working on the issues that we decided on at the Madrid Summit, so very excited to have some great conversations on those issues today.
I absolutely agree with you on your comments on the UN action, and I couldn't put it better. So I think we're absolutely in agreement there. I also agree with you on the fact that we're going to stay with our efforts to support Ukraine for as long as it takes. And you've heard us say that over and over again. The other thing that you've heard us say over and over again is that the United States is absolutely committed to its Article 5 commitments and we are committed to defending every inch of NATO’s territory if and when it comes to that.
I want to applaud all of our Allies and partners who stepped up to provide assistance to Ukraine. You know, Russia is in its eighth month of its unprovoked and unjust invasion of Ukraine. And since it has done that, Allies have continued to step up to provide security assistance. And that just speaks to the quality of this Alliance and the focus of the Alliance members. And so I could not be more proud of the work that's been done. It also speaks to the point that this Alliance is the essential forum for consultation and decision making and action when it comes to security of the region and transatlantic security as well.
So, looking forward to some great discussions today. I also look forward to welcoming Finland and Sweden to the Alliance at some point in the future. And Jens, thanks again for convening the ministerial. I really look forward to some great discussions.
