Mehmet Kemal Bozay

The Greek-Turkish rapprochement process is moving within a framework of step-by-step efforts to maintain a calm climate and manage issues that could provoke tensions in the immediate future. Naturally, the significant distance separating the two countries on the major issue of maritime delimitation defines both the framework and the limits of this challenging undertaking.

Greece and Turkey agreed to disagree on core disputes while seeking collaboration on less contentious issues during their third round of political dialogue in Athens on Tuesday. 

The meeting, led by Greek Deputy Foreign Minister Alexandra Papadopoulou and her Turkish counterpart Mehmet Kemal Bozay, marked an effort to balance persistent tensions with targeted cooperation.

Delegations from Türkiye and Greece convened in Athens on Tuesday to advance cooperative relations under the framework of the "positive agenda," the Turkish Embassy in Athens announced.

Greek Deputy Foreign Minister Alexandra Papadopoulou and Turkish Deputy Foreign Minister Mehmet Kemal Bozay met in Athens on Tuesday for the third round of political dialogue talks.  

Discussions addressed bilateral relations, EU-Turkey ties and regional developments, with a focus on preparing for the 2025 High-Level Cooperation Council in Turkey.

Greek and Turkish foreign ministers Giorgos Gerapetritis and Hakan Fidan are set to meet amid challenging conditions to maintain scheduled talks.

Meetings are planned either on Tuesday or Wednesday in Brussels or at the OSCE meeting in Malta. Concurrently, other diplomatic processes, including the positive agenda and political dialogue, are ongoing.

The 7th meeting of the Greece-Turkey Positive Agenda is taking place today in Athens, led by the two responsible Deputy Ministers of Foreign Affairs, Kostas Fragkogiannis and Mehmet Kemal Bozay. During this meeting, Mr. Fragkogiannis and Mr.

The Greek government has decided that progress in resolving differences with Turkey over maritime zones and the two countries' continental shelf in the Aegean Sea is all but impossible. It has thus shifted its priorities back to maintaining contacts and engaging in lower-level talks.

The next steps in Greek-Turkish relations will be at stake in a meeting on Tuesday between Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in New York, on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly. 

Deputy Foreign Minister Mehmet Kemal Bozay and EU Commissioner for Cohesion and Reforms Elisa Ferreira signed the official authorization agreement for a 400 million euro aid package to be provided to Türkiye through the EU Solidarity Fund for the region affected by the Feb. 6 earthquakes last year.

The landmark free trade agreement signed between Turkey and the U.K. has shown that the European Union Customs Union falls behind on many fronts, a top Turkish official said on Jan. 6. 

The deal between Ankara and London signed last week could be a model for updating the customs union, said Nail Olpak, the head of Turkey's Foreign Economic Relations Board, at a virtual meeting.