Gov't jet carrying Venizelos back from Turkey conducts emergency landing

A government jet carrying Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Evangelos Venizelos back to Athens from Ankara where he had attended the inauguration ceremony of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was forced to conduct an emergency landing in Thessaloniki on Friday due to a technical problem.

According to sources, a small crack in the pilot's windshield forced the plane to land at Thessaloniki's international airport.

During his visit to Ankara, Venizelos delivered to Erdogan a letter from Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades in which the latter appeals to Turkey's new head of state to display a spirit of cooperation and strive for a solution of the Cyprus problem. Erdogan is expected to visit Cyprus on Monday in a visit that will be closely watched by both Athens and Nicosia.