Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan argued on Friday that Türkiye and Greece should work together to resolve their problems, which he said are not limited to disagreements over maritime boundaries and jurisdiction in the eastern Mediterranean.

Speaking at a press conference in Athens together with his Greek counterpart George Gerapetritis, Fidan said the two countries are making efforts to better understand each other on critical issues and stressed the need to act “realistically” and “correctly diagnose” their problems in the Aegean ”. .

Neighboring countries Greece and Türkiye, both NATO allies but historic enemies, have long been at odds over issues such as where their continental shelves begin and end, energy sources, migration, flights across the Aegean Sea and the ethnically divided island of Cyprus.

“We can contribute to the mutual well-being of our people with a win-win policy, especially in this challenging region,” Fidan said, referring to the ongoing conflicts in Ukraine and Palestine.

“Türkiye remains steadfast in its position that sharing should be fair in the Eastern Mediterranean,” he added.

An agreement on where their maritime zones begin and end is important for determining rights over potential gas reserves and energy infrastructure plans.

Tensions between historic rivals have eased in recent years and both countries agreed to restart their ties last year, pledging to keep open channels of communication and work on the issues that kept them apart.

Friday’s meeting was an attempt to explore whether there is room for resolving the maritime dispute, which has been largely frozen for years because neither side is willing to budge on their terms.

Türkiye, which has the longest continental coastline in the eastern Mediterranean, rejects the maritime border claims of Greece and the Greek Cypriot government, arguing that their excessive claims violate the sovereign rights of both Türkiye and the Turkish Cypriots in the region.

For his part, Gerapetritis acknowledged the “big gap” between Turkish and Greek positions on the issue, saying: “We are determined to discuss and reduce this gap as much as possible.”

“Greece and Turkey still do not agree on the extent of the issues to be addressed over the designation of their maritime boundaries, but discussions on this topic will continue,” assured Gerapetritis.

Gerapetritis said it was a first approach to a “difficult and crucial issue” and added that the next round of talks between Greece and Turkey will take place on December 2 and 3 in Athens.

Fidan also reiterated Ankara’s position that a federation model to resolve the Cyprus dispute was no longer feasible, and called for a two-state solution.

He also said that Türkiye wants to deepen cooperation with Greece in the areas of irregular migration and counter-terrorism, while increasing cooperation in tourism and cultural affairs.

Fidan revealed that the annual volume of Turkish-Greek trade would exceed $6 billion by the end of this year and confirmed that construction of the second bridge on the northern land border would begin in the coming period.

Both ministers confirmed that preparations are underway for the Greek-Turkish High-Level Cooperation Council, scheduled to take place in Ankara in early 2025.

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