The arrest of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu has shaken diplomatic relations between Türkiye and Greece, leading Athens to announce the postponement of a planned meeting between the leaders of the two countries.
Greek government spokesperson Pavlos Marinakis stated, “Given these developments, it is becoming difficult to organize the High-Level Cooperation Council between Greece and Türkiye immediately.”
The High-Level Council consists of a series of meetings aimed at improving relations through “soft politics,” as progress on contentious issues such as territorial disputes has stalled.
As Kathimerini recently reported, the meeting planned between Greek leader Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on April 8 was not yet finalized due to the political crisis in Türkiye, even though negotiations between Athens and Ankara had reached their final stage.
The spokesperson added, “We are monitoring the developments in Türkiye. The situation remains fluid and concerning. Our stance on Imamoglu has not changed. Concessions on the rule of law and political freedoms are unacceptable, and convincing answers are needed for any concessions made.”
Marinakis mentioned that the issue could be discussed by the foreign ministers of both countries at the NATO foreign ministers’ summit in Brussels in early April.
