Turkish, Greek defense ministers meet amid renewed tensions

The defense ministers of Greece and Türkiye met on June 16 on the sidelines of a NATO meeting amid renewed tensions between the neighboring countries and allies, Türkiye's defense ministry said.

The discussion in Brussels between Türkiye's Hulusi Akar and Nikos Panagiotopoulos of Greece focused on the "importance of continuing the dialogue in order to reduce tensions," according to a ministry statement.

They discussed the need to keep channels of communication open, to focus on a positive agenda and bilateral and regional cooperation, according to the statement.

Last week, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan warned Greece to demilitarize its islands in the Aegean, saying he was "not joking." He spoke during Turkish military exercises near the islands, including an amphibious landing scenario.

The government in Ankara says Athens has built a military presence on the Aegean islands in violation of 20th century treaties that ceded the islands to Greece after a long period of occupation by Turks _ or in the case of Rhodes and Kos, by Italy.

Greek government spokesman Giannis Oikonomou said Thursday: "Greece has no intention of engaging in any way that would heighten the tension in the region."

NATO to boost its forces, equipment on eastern flank

Meanwhile, NATO defense ministers on Thursday discussed ways to bolster forces and deterrence along the military alliance's eastern borders to dissuade Russia from planning further aggression in the wake of its invasion of Ukraine.

The Russian invasion has led allies to rethink strategies and to agree that NATO forces should be present in greater numbers on that eastern flank. NATO says it has placed over 40,000 troops under its direct command,...