Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, during their meeting in Athens on Thursday, signed the “Athens Declaration on Friendly Relations and Good-Neighbourliness” on behalf of their respective governments after “having chaired the 5th meeting of the High-Level Cooperation Council between the Republic of Türkiye and the Hellenic Republic on December 7th, 2023, in Athens, in a spirit of goodwill and cooperation.”

Greek government sources referring to the Athens Declaration pointed out the following:

– It is a very important text, as it is the first time that Greece and Turkiye, with the signatures of the Greek Prime Minister and the Turkish President, commit to relations of friendship and good neighbourliness and to remaining in ‘calm waters’.

– Specifically, the declaration highlights the significance of effective communication channels at all levels and emphasises the prevention of conflict situations and possible escalation.

– Additionally, the declaration outlines the principles and the milestones of Greek-Turkish dialogue and of the contacts based on the three axes agreed at Mitsotakis and Erdogan’s meeting in Vilnius in July. Political dialogue (on issues of mutual interest, including the exploratory talks), the positive agenda (which will be constantly enriched), Confidence Building Measures (in which are included measures for the reduction of unjustified sources of tension as well as the risks deriving from them).

– It is a statement of intentions in which Turkiye commits to UN Charter objectives and to the principles of the International Law and to friendly cooperation between the countries.

– There is a clear reference to a commitment for refraining from statements and actions that undermine that spirit and the letter of the Declaration or set at risk the peace and the stability in the region.

– The neighbouring country commits to amicably resolving any dispute that may arise with Greece  either with direct consultations or with other means of mutual choice as provided in the UN Charter.

-The Declaration of Athens does not affect the legal positions of the two countries