Turkey reiterates call for ‘demilitarization’ of Greek islands

Only days after meeting with his Greek counterpart in Athens, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan has reiterated his view that the his country’s dispute with Greece does not only concern maritime boundaries – specifically the continental shelf and exclusive economic zones (EEZ) – but also broader issues, including the “demilitarization” of Greek islands.

Only days after meeting with his Greek counterpart in Athens, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan has reiterated his view that the his country’s dispute with Greece does not only concern maritime boundaries – specifically the continental shelf and exclusive economic zones (EEZ) – but also broader issues, including the “demilitarization” of Greek islands.

“We have problems in the Aegean; we don’t have just one problem, we have many problems, we have to discuss them,” he said, in an interview with Turkish TV channel A Haber.

The problems are “the continuation of the militarization of the islands, which must be demilitarized, the continental shelf, the territorial waters, formations whose status has not been determined, the airspace, the EEZ,” he said.

Greece maintains that questions of sovereignty are non-negotiable and should not be part of the bilateral dialogue. The government remains committed to its long-standing position of seeking recourse to international jurisdiction solely on the issue of the continental shelf and EEZ dispute.

“There are many issues. For these issues, after describing them properly, we can proceed with the appropriate solution. We have to see how a different approach can be taken, looking of course at the previous efforts, if this possibility exists,” Fidan said.