Upbeat Turkish media reception over Erdogan visit
The Athens meeting between Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, anticipated with cautious optimism by Greek media, has for the most part also made a positive impression on their Turkish counterparts.
The first of its kind since 2017, after which relations between the Greek and Turkish governments steadily worsened over both bilateral and regional disputes, the meeting and joint press conference saw both leaders express optimism about the future, with Mitsotakis emphasizing that it will be critical for both countries to “continue their relations in a calm environment,” and President Erdogan proclaiming a “new era” of diplomatic discourse between the two nations.
Indeed, disputes between Athens and Ankara have been almost entirely absent since the devastating February earthquakes in Turkey. Greece’s humanitarian response to its greatly appreciative neighbor ushered in an era of diplomatic calm not seen since 1999, when large earthquakes struck both nations. While the surface level climate between the two has improved, as some Turkish outlets point out, the underlying causes of the disputes are still very present.
The Haber Turk outlet headlined the meeting by proclaiming, “The ice is melting between Turkey and Greece!” CNN Turk underlined the conference as “critical” to Greek-Turkish diplomatic and economic ties.
As Greek newspapers and television channels were busy speculating about how the get-together would play out, often expressing cautious optimism over which issues would be bought up by the president at the Maximos Mansion, their Turkish counterparts were generally more reserved. Some Turkish television commentators emphasized that while the climate may be positive, the underlying issues of the disputes between the two countries are still very much in play, be they new, like the unprecedented flow of illegal immigrants into Europe via Turkey, or old, like the gridlock over Cyprus. TRT World furthermore brought up that Turkey has “protested repeated provocative actions and rhetoric by Greece,” regarding the Greek military presence on certain Greek islands bordering Turkey.
Every major Turkish TV channel broadcast the conference in its entirety and showed particular interest on the topics of handling illegal immigration and the issue of Turkish tourists visiting Greek islands.
With Turkey not being in the Schengen area, a special agreement had been struck between Athens and Ankara to allow for Turkish tourists to visit 10 Greek Aegean islands without the hassle of having to get a travel visa. This agreement was canceled in 2017 following disputes between the two countries, as well as Turkish conflict with Brussels over uncontrolled immigration and other issues. Greek business owners on these particular islands protested against the decision, and displeasure among Turks was also very palpable. The statement made by Mitsotakis over the reinstatement of this deal was received with great delight by the Turkish media.
Another statement made by Mitsotakis regarding the possibility of stationing a Greek coast guard officer or official on the Turkish coast, as well as a Turkish counterpart on a Greek island, was also seen as a very positive step forward toward resolving the immigration problem. This possibility had also been hinted at by the Greek Foreign Ministry prior to the meeting.
The Greek government’s decision to shut down a refugee camp in Lavrio, eastern Attica, was also viewed very positively both by the Turkish president and the Turkish media. Turkish politicians have in the past accused Greece of harboring terrorists in the camp.
With the joint press conference over, Turkish outlets quickly turned to their usual programming, closely following the war in Gaza, on which Athens and Ankara find themselves in opposing camps.
