Shadow cast over PM’s Ankara visit

In what is seen as a reflection of its inherently revisionist approach to Greek-Turkish relations, Ankara sent mixed signals just days before the planned meeting between Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the Turkish capital. 

Although Erdogan made overtures to Athens, stating that there are no unsolvable difficulties, he had earlier declared the conversion of the Chora monastery into a mosque on a model comparable to Hagia Sophia (i.e., with a limited number of visitors). 

However, the Greeks recalled the universal character of the Chora monastery, noting that the decision of the Turkish authorities "alters and insults its character as a UNESCO World Heritage Site" which belongs to humanity.

"We are trying to increase our friends. We have no problem that we cannot solve with the countries of our region," Erdogan told a...