N. KOTZIAS: I would like to thank the Minister of Foreign Affairs, my friend Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, for the invitation to come to Ankara once again, a city constantly growing more beautiful, as do its people.I thank him for the invitation that gives us the opportunity to exchange thoughts, because as long as diplomacy comes first, one can set a positive agenda in the relations between two countries.I also must say that I am pleased that today I will be meeting with President Erdoğan, a great leader of our neighbouring country.We want Greek-Turkish relations to be as close, friendly and considerate as possible. Our peoples have a great deal to gain from the development of our cooperation and from our keeping third parties from meddling our relationship.We are living in a difficult world, a world that is changing fast, a world in which many people feel insecure. That is, they feel they live in instability, and often they do not have in mind a perspective on what the future will hold.In this fast-changing world, it is important for the relations between Greece and Turkey – two important countries with great histories and even greater future – to develop steadily.Our countries are located in a region rife with crises: to our north, in Ukraine; to our south-west, in Libya; to our south-east, in Syria and Iraq. We are two countries that want peace in the region, that want stability, and this is why we need to work together and exchange opinions and ideas on the subject.It is of great importance that we form an anchor of stability in a world that is changing and is unstable, and that this firm friendship is a sincere one. We have differences and disagreements, but we also have a positive agenda before us so that we can move forward.We support, passionately I would say – because we have experienced similar challenges –democracy and the democratic institutions in Turkey, and from the very outset we took a stand against the coup, as we do with any kind of coup.We are also a country that, with great sincerity, conviction and consistency, supports Turkey’s European path, Turkey’s path to the European Union.We believe deeply that our country will gain more than any other country in the European Union from a Turkey that is a member of this Union. We believe it, we want it, and we don’t like it when we witness doublespeak, double standards and hypocrisy. These have no place in international politics or inter-state relations.It is of great importance, during this period of instability, that we maintain open the channels of communication between the two states. The meetings between the Ministers of Foreign Affairs are very important from this perspective, because the Ministries of Foreign Affairs also coordinate the cooperation and contacts among other ministries.Today we discussed the need for us to continue our cooperation on the migration issue and to organize a meeting of the Culture Ministers. But I think two things are the most important: in February we will hold the fifth G2G meeting, the High-Level Cooperation Council, in an historic city, Thessaloniki, where many peoples have left their mark. And I will also tell you now, though perhaps it might be somewhat inelegant of me: today I will be conveying an official invitation to President Erdoğan, who is very welcome. The President of the Hellenic Republic, Prokopis Pavlopoulos, awaits him with great pleasure and friendship.In general, Mevlüt and I are developing a positive agenda and contribute to the cooperation in the tourism sector. We are fortunate to be representatives of two states with beautiful coastlines and regions. We are moving ahead on economic cooperation and on the joint transport projects, on cooperation in the field of education and training, particularly at the level of higher education.We also believe that we should continue our meetings on all the levels of the Ministries of Foreign Affairs, and especially the very successful meetings of our Secretaries General, the equivalent of Political Directors - because there is no precise correspondence between the two positions.We asked our Secretaries General to contribute to the preparations for the High-Level Cooperation Council and coordinate the various Directorates, so that we can exchange thoughts on major problems affecting or vexing the two states and that we always talk, as we do, with great understanding for one another.We discussed on issues such as the betterment of living conditions for the Muslim minority and its education and for the Greek presence from Imbros to Istanbul, so as to resolve certain problems of legal or bureaucratic nature that have existed for many years now. I was very pleased that my colleague Mevlüt and I agreed to seek and promote solutions on issues that do not need to be outstanding anymore.I would like to thank Mevlüt once again for his hospitality; this wonderful hospitality of the Turkish soul. And I would like to promise him that I will reciprocate this hospitality.The last time he visited, it was on the beautiful island of Crete. Now we agreed to go to an equally beautiful island, but we will reveal which one in good time. I think that when the Ministries of Foreign Affairs hold their meetings in different places in each country, this brings an element of culture and an image that helps develop tourism on both sides.Mevlüt, thank you once again for your hospitality, for the creative, productive talks we had, which we will continue with President Erdoğan.Thank you very much.
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