Refugee agreement: A critical test of Greco-Turkish relations

Last week, Greece and Turkey embarked on a difficult journey, the safe navigation of which is not guaranteed. 

Following the Turkey-EU agreement aimed at curbing the flow of refugees/migrants, the two countries will now jointly try to manage a practically enormous and legally controversial issue which has already been met with a lot of criticism worldwide. 

Greece and Turkey have had a long, tempestuous history of wars and peace, with animosities followed by friendship agreements. Their peoples have been deeply marked by painful memories and the loss of lives. So, it is only a logical sequence to wonder how these two countries will manage to collaborate closely now - especially when considering that their theater of operations is the Aegean Sea, which is the source of their bilateral problems! It is true that since the launching of "earthquake diplomacy" in the 1990s, Greeks and Turks have been experiencing the longest peaceful period in their recent history, but it is also true that their governments have retained a long list of complicated foreign policy issues on the shelf to be solved during prolonged and inconclusive talks. 

The refugee/migrant crisis that exploded in our neighborhood has laid bare a Europe below our expectations; it has turned into a serious humanitarian issue now directly influencing Greek and Turkish societies. The solution that was suggested by Turkey and agreed by the EU has just been implemented. Already in the first hours, however, we have witnessed not only the actual drama of the individual refugees/migrants, but also the reactions by local communities on both sides of the Aegean. The migrant issue is a hot potato that the Europeans have thrown at us. It is up to us to manage it. 

At this very early...