The upcoming meeting between George Gerapetritis and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Washington on Friday – which will be preceded by “a series of meetings with congressmen, senators, presidents and members of important Senate committees” – was reported by a senior diplomatic source as stressing that over the past five years “an extremely good relationship with the United States has been established.”

Greece “has proven that it is the most serious and reliable partner of the United States,” he said. “Many have requested a meeting, but the Greek minister will be one of the first two or three people the US secretary of state will meet,” the source said, stressing the strategic nature of Greek-American relations. Besides, he added, “I don’t have the feeling that we don’t have channels in the new US administration or with the Republicans.”

“We are a member of the Security Council, so by definition we are a co-producer of the architecture. We have a lot of strong cards to play, we are working on our strong cards. The relations that we have developed in the wider Middle East is something that very much strengthens Greece’s diplomatic position towards the US,” the same source said.

Syria

Responding to rumors about the possible signing by Turkey and Syria of a memorandum similar to the Turkish-Cypriot one, but also on the occasion of developments in Syria and the recent visit there by the Greek Foreign Minister, the same senior diplomatic source stressed that respect for international law, and especially the law of the sea, is a firm position of both Greece and Cyprus, as well as the European Union.

Besides, as he noted, “the boundaries of the maritime zones of Cyprus and Syria are the boundaries of Europe and Syria. Therefore, the fact that the issue of international law has been explicitly included as a precondition for the normalization of relations between European countries and the new transitional government of Syria on the one hand, and for the lifting of sanctions on the other, is in itself very important.”

He went on to stress the criticality of the Greek presence at the Paris Conference on Syria, which shows that Greece is in the middle of developments in the region. Moreover, it was through the Greek presence that it was ensured that international law was included in the joint declaration on the future of Syria, a declaration which was co-signed by both Syria itself and Turkey.

He also considered that the Iranian presence has been significantly reduced, the Russian presence has suffered a blow but remains mainly at the military level, while Turkey has expanded its influence. The challenge for the West is to lift sanctions in a reversible way. “Syria is coming out of a very difficult time and needs support, but it also needs to provide tangible evidence of the steps it is taking.”

However, he stressed that Syria’s transition to political normalcy should be purely Syrian-led, should include full respect for international law, should be democratic, and should include all religious and ethnic communities equally.

In any case, he said, “we should remember that after 14 years of civil war, Syria has suffered a huge blow. It is a country that is pinned down. This means that, in addition to the extremely important issue of rebuilding the institutions, there must also be an overall revitalization of the country, which is crucial for its future. From the Greek side, therefore, rebuilding infrastructure and creating inclusive and democratic institutions are crucial steps for the return of Syrian refugees. Of course, the way the country is now, it is very difficult to have a mass return in a short period of time,” he said.

Cyprus and Greek-Turkish relations

A senior diplomatic source also expressed the view that the Cyprus problem has been significantly upgraded and is moving in a constructive direction.

“Besides, it now seems to be one of the top priorities of the UN Secretary General, which is also due to the efforts of the Greek Foreign Ministry. Of course, this does not mean that the basic differences in the positions of the two sides have been overcome, nor does it mean that the two-state solution posed by the Turkish Cypriots and Turkey is being discussed,” he said.

But the important thing, he added, “is that there is a road map” on which “trust can be built“. Certainly, however, “there cannot be a magic solution in such a way that the Cyprus problem can be solved in one or three or six months.” But what “is very, very important is that the Turkish Cypriots and Turkey sit down at the table.”

As everyone realizes, he pointed out, there can be no immediate and easy solution to Greek-Turkish relations either. “As in the Cyprus problem, so in other issues, the basic positions of the two sides have not changed. And, therefore, one would not expect that there will be an immediate positive development. This is not one of those cases where you flip a switch on or off. These things take time,” he said.

What is being sought to achieve with Turkey “is to build a relationship of sincerity step by step and, above all, to have safeguards to de-escalate situations and avoid crises. If we manage to come out in the debate on the demarcation it will be very important. However, in order to enter into such a discussion, we must first agree on the framework. This framework has not been agreed,” the senior diplomatic source said.