Turkey, Greece FMs Hold Talks as Tensions Ease

On Thursday, the Greek foreign Nikos Dendias held talks with his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu on the sidelines of the Global Security Forum in the Slovak capital Bratislava to discuss bilateral and regional issues.

The meeting was held for the first time since tensions raised over energy exploration activities conducted by Turkey in the eastern Mediterranean.

The two top diplomats agreed to set a date for the start of a new round of exploratory talks between the two countries.

A dispute between the two NATO allies and longtime rivals over maritime boundaries in the eastern Mediterranean this summer led to fears that the dispute might slide into an open confrontation as warships from both sides faced off.

The atmosphere of what both sides said was a brief meeting appeared cordial and even jovial as the two, both wearing masks, bumped elbows, patted each other on the shoulder and stood at a table to talk.

A Greek diplomatic official said the the talks will be the 61st round of a long-running process of talks between Greece and Turkey designed to reduce tension and improve relations that are often testy between the two neighbors.

At odds over a series of issues, including territorial disputes in the Aegean Sea, the two countries have come to the brink of war three times since the mid-1970s. Earlier this summer, Turkey sent a research vessel escorted by warships to prospect for energy resources in the eastern Mediterranean in an area Greece says is over its own continental shelf and where it claims exclusive economic rights.

Greece mobilized its own navy fleet and put its armed forces on standby. The tension has eased in recent weeks, with NATO helping set up a deconfliction mechanism whereby the Greek and Turkish militaries can communicate to avoid an accident that could lead to war and the two sides agree to restart their exploratory talks process.