Greece denies meeting with Turkish delegation at NATO

ATHENS

Greece on Sept. 10 denied that it attended technical talks with a Turkish military delegation at NATO headquarters, according to its official news agency.

ANA news agency quoted diplomatic sources in Athens as saying that the Greek delegation did not “exchange views” with Turkish authorities.

“They said that a Greek officer went to the office of the Chairman of the NATO Military Committee to submit Greece's comments on the NATO Secretary-General's proposals on a possible de-escalation mechanism,” ANA said.

“The Chairman of the Military Committee asked the Greek officer for a series of clarifications on the submitted comments,” it added.

Claiming that “there was no dialogue with the Turkish officers,” the sources said, Turkey’s statements on the meeting was a “part of Turkey's ongoing effort to present an unrealistic picture in order to avoid potential sanctions,” according to ANA.

Earlier, Turkey’s National Defense Ministry said the technical meeting at NATO headquarters between Turkish and Greek military delegations concluded.

Both sides discussed measures aimed at preventing possible military engagement in the Eastern Mediterranean, the ministry said in a statement.

Another meeting is expected to be held in the coming days, it added.

Meanwhile, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Sept. 10 he will visit Greek Cyprus to seek a peaceful solution to mounting Mediterranean tensions.

Pompeo will hold talks in Greek Cyprus on Sept. 12 after a trip to Doha where he will help inaugurate long-awaited talks between Afghanistan's government and the Taliban.

The top U.S. diplomat said his trip to Greek Cyprus would complement phone calls by President Donald Trump with his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis.

The dispute "has to be resolved in a way that's diplomatic and peaceful," Pompeo told reporters on his plane.