JOURNALIST: Turkey is continuing its tactic of escalating provocations with the survey vessels in the Eastern Mediterranean. How should our country respond?
M. VARVITSIOTIS: Greece is a pillar of stability and security in the Southeastern Mediterranean, and it is from this perspective that we deal with our neighbours. Turkey’s increasing provocations are a result of the diplomatic impasse it finds itself in. Our country wants to pursue good neighbourly relations with Turkey, as we have tourism and trade relations with our neighbours that contribute to the prosperity of both peoples. But good neighbourliness requires full and sincere respect for international law as a whole. We are the ones who want to live in peace with all our neighbours. But Turkey needs to respect international and European law and the Borders, Territory and Exclusive Economic Zone of Greece, which are the Borders, Territory and Exclusive Economic Zone of the European Union. We cannot back down from this position in any way.
JOURNALIST: For some time now, we have been seeing a standoff – the U.S. and the EU on one side, and Turkey on the other – with constant warnings issued. But Turkey has flaunted these warnings, staying its provocative course. How do you explain this ‘delicate’ treatment?
M. VARVITSIOTIS: Turkey is a NATO ally, and there is no question that it plays a powerful geostrategic role.
But it has to grasp international legality and the international framework it is acting in, and not export its domestic problems to the international landscape.
The U.S. and the EU have a clear stance on Turkey’s international conduct – especially with regard to issues that concern us and the drilling in Cyprus – expressly stating their disagreement with the activities of the ‘Yavuz’ drilling platform, which is operating within the territorial waters of the Republic of Cyprus. In the same context they are urging the Turkish authorities to immediately stop the illegal activities and withdraw the ‘Yavuz’ from the territorial waters of the Republic of Cyprus.
These are crystal clear messages that Turkey needs to heed.
JOURNALIST: Turkey is taking a tough stance in Cyprus, and it essentially invaded the EEZ of the Republic of Cyprus without so much as a shot fired. After this violation of the Cypriot EEZ, do you think Greece and the Aegean will be next?
M. VARVITSIOTIS: Turkey’s actions in Cyprus are illegal, and that’s how they are seen by the whole of the international community. Our country is pursuing peace and stability in the region, but it will not stand for unilateral actions that create accomplished facts. Turkey needs to respect international law and desist from its illegal activities, which have no legal foundation. In this context, we have a very clear stance: what belongs to us belongs to us, and there is no way we will give rights to someone who doesn’t have those rights today. Anything else is out of the question.
JOURNALIST: If Turkey’s demand for participation in Aegean resources isn’t resolved, do you think a solution will be found to the decades of tensions between the two countries?
M. VARVITSIOTIS: Our country supports and encourages any initiative taken in the spirit of good neighbourly relations and mutual respect. Beyond that, with regard to a ‘resolution’ – to use your term – our country will never negotiate its sovereign rights, and it has both the means and the resolve to defend these rights whenever necessary. At the same time, we consistently respond to the tensions and provocations by invoking international law, while also building and consolidating our alliances with countries that share our outlook on stability and security in the region.
JOURNALIST: A discussion – informal, for the time being – has already been launched on co-exploitation of potential mineral wealth in the Aegean. Statements from Mr. Kotzias and Mr. Katrougalos, when they were at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, were interpreted as leaving a door open for co-exploitation. Do you think such a discussion should take place?
M. VARVITSIOTIS: Co-exploitation means conceding sovereign rights, and as such – as I have already said – any discussion of that kind is out of the question. We realise that Turkey finds itself facing a number of impasses as a result of its own moves, and it made some of these moves in the Aegean and in the wider region. It is up to Turkey itself to come to us with a positive agenda that respects the sovereign rights of its neighbours and returns Turkey to the path of international law.
JOURNALIST: Do you think Cyprus’s offshore wealth can be used as leverage to speed up developments toward finding a definitive solution to the Cyprus problem?
M. VARVITSIOTIS: Greece and Cyprus have always had a shared outlook on security and cooperation issues in the Eastern Mediterranean region. But in any event, our country remains dedicated to the principle of “Nicosia decides, Greece follows.” It is easy to see, however, that there cannot be a sincere dialogue while Turkey keeps sending more research vessels into the Cypriot EEZ. Greece is responding to Turkey’s provocative conduct with a network of powerful alliances in the region, and of course Cyprus is a key member of these alliances.
JOURNALIST: Europe failed to resolve the migration problem, and our country is facing the resurgent problem. Now it’s your government’s turn to find solutions. How will this solution differ from those of the Syriza government?
M. VARVITSIOTIS: The migration issue really is a problem of the wider region, not just Greece.
But the shameful images from Moria and Idomeni, the negligent handling of resources from Community funds, the old mindsets and political activism, the more than 70,000 stalled applications for asylum are purely the responsibility of the previous government, and all of this certainly exacerbated the situation.
Our government has already launched an action plan for dealing with this reality, reminding our European partners of the Greek initiative for a better return mechanism – in technical and practical terms – and the legislation for faster processing of asylum applications.
August 31, 2019