The re-election of Erdogan did not surprise us, we had a very clear picture of what is happening in the neighbouring country, said Nikos Dendias in speaking with SKAI 100.3 about the election result in Turkey.
Regarding the future of Greek-Turkish relations, the former Greek foreign minister said that "there are no certainties, the developments will be determined by how the Turkish president wants to ensure his reputation".
He noted that Erdogan has to choose between possible courses for his country, with Greece being the only country that supports Turkey's European course.
Dendias added that the neighbouring country is in enormous economic difficulty, while noting that "we are waiting for Erdogan's writing samples and we hope that the window of opportunity will enable new efforts for Greek-Turkish dialogue."
Regarding the position of Greece, he said that we have the permanent position, we do not claim anything from Turkey, we do not ask for anything, we demand a behaviour within the limits of international law, no threats of war, no illegal memoranda.
"If Turkey embraces this, then there is ground to honestly discuss our one difference," he noted.
Dendias added: "Greece has no intention of excluding Turkey from the sea, but it will not cede its sovereign rights. We can find a way out and the leader of the New Democracy has made it very clear that he will attempt the resumption of contacts and discussions."
The former foreign minister added that there is a window of opportunity, "but if we leave it to chance, some random incident will happen, which will bring us back, time is an important commodity and I would take advantage of it."
He added that he is of the opinion that when you don't express initiatives, you leave room for others to express them and you don't know if the position from which they express them suits you.
As for the possibility that there will be criticism of the handling with Turkey, Dendias commented: "There is always the risk of criticism, I found society to be a supporter and helper."
About the exchange with his counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu, he said: "Some things have to be said openly, you can't do games while there is casus belli, it's not a matter of politeness because I was in his capital. We can't talk about it here and go there for the kataifi, which I almost lost that day..." he added jokingly.
Regarding the fact that Turkey raises the issue of sovereignty over the rocky islands and islets, Dendias said: "I hope he's saying it pretentiously, he's creating secondary issues, I hope it's a tactic and not a perception of the law."
Finally, regarding the result of the elections, he expressed his gratitude to Greek society for honouring him and added that the prime minister will make his choices.
As for the June 25 elections, he noted: "If we start the arrogance that we have the people captive, we will pay for it very dearly. The people have wisdom to understand."
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