Statements disputing the Lausanne Treaty were dangerous for relations between Greece and Turkey, as well as the surrounding region, Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras stated on Friday afternoon. The prime minister was responding to comments made by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan regarding the 1923 Lausanne Treaty on Thursday.
Tsipras had previously chaired a meeting of the Government Council on Foreign Affairs and Defence (KYSEA), where the foreign minister, defence minister and the head of the Hellenic Armed Forces General Staff had briefed him on developments linked to security issues in the region.
“Disputing the Lausanne Treaty, which clearly and finally settled relations between Greece and Turkey, as well as the status of the Aegean and its islands, is dangerous. As much for relations between our countries as for the broader region,” Tsipras warned.
Regardless of the real causes that prompted such statements disputing international legality, “Greece will not follow down this path,” the prime minister said.
“We will continue to reinforce, with consistency and determination, Greece’s role as a pillar of peace and stability in a fragile region. As a country that steadfastly defends its territorial rights on the basis of international law,” he added.
The KYSEA meeting focused on the participation of Greece’s armed forces in NATO Assurance Measures, the activation of armaments sub-programmes and the selection of a new fire brigade chief.