NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg urged for a de-escalation of tensions between Greece and Turkey after the recent events near the islets of Imia in the Aegean Sea. Responding to a question during a press conference after the end of the NATO meeting of Ministers in Brussels, Mr Stoltenberg the matter was at the centre of attention in his talks with the Defence Ministers of Greece and Turkey and that he had been briefed on the incident of the ramming of the Greek coastguard boat by the Turkish ships near Imia. “I welcome the fact that the two Prime Ministers spoke on the phone and I urged for talks to continue in order to avoid such incidents in the future, reduce tensions and avoid new escalation,” he said, adding that the two countries are “valuable allies”. “We want to do our utmost to avoid real problems and the escalation of conflict and tension between them”, the NATO Secretary said.