Alternate Minister of Foreign Affairs Miltiadis Varvitsiotis’ statement upon arrival at the EU General Affairs Council meeting (Luxembourg, 22.06.2021)

“The main issue for us is the issue of Turkey. We welcome the fact that there is a de-escalation in Greek-Turkish relations, but we still ask Turkey to show in practice that it is in line with the European acquis and this remains a Greek but also a European demand”. This was the message sent by Alternate Minister of Foreign Affairs, Miltiadis Varvitsiotis, upon his arrival at the EU General Affairs Council meeting in Luxembourg, which will prepare for the European Council meeting of 24 and 25 June 2021. Mr. Varvitsiotis added that it is of particular importance that the European Union, which has always supported Greece’s legitimate requests, exerts pressure on Turkey to accept international law as a basis for resolving international disputes.

At the same time, the Alternate Minister stressed that the migration issue, which will be addressed by the Council, is an issue of national importance to Greece, for which “we need to find some middle ground so as to achieve a common migration policy that will both guarantee human rights and protect external borders, without turning the frontline states into countries where refugees and migrants will stay permanently”.