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ISTANBUL—Turkey and Greece might soon resume talks over their contested Mediterranean claims, according to Turkey’s presidential spokesman, who cautioned European Union leaders meeting this week that warnings of sanctions against Ankara won’t help the situation.
The NATO members and their neighbors have been locked in a bitter dispute over the extent of their continental shelves in the eastern Mediterranean. Tensions flared in August when Turkey sent a vessel to survey for gas and oil in contested waters.
European Union member Greece condemned the move as illegal and pressed, along with Cyprus, for a strong response from EU leaders when they meet on Sept. 24.
Ankara withdrew the Oruc Reis vessel Sept. 13. It described the move as a routine maintenance stop but later said it opened up the chance for diplomacy to reduce tensions with Athens.
“At this point, the climate has become much more suitable for negotiations to begin,” presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalin told Dogan News Agency on Sept. 20. “Exploratory talks may start again.”
In August, Greece and Turkey were on the verge of resuming those “exploratory” talks, suspended in 2016. But Turkey broke off contact and sent the Oruc Reis into disputed waters after Greece signed a maritime demarcation deal with Egypt, angering Ankara.
Sanctions Threats
Turkish President Recep Erdogan has had talks with EU Council President Charles Michel, who chairs the meetings of EU leaders, and German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who is seeking to ease the crisis.
But Cyprus, protesting the presence of two Turkish exploration vessels in waters off the divided island, insists on sanctions against Ankara and has blocked EU action against Belarus for alleged election fraud until its demands are met.
“Threats of blackmail and of sanctions against Turkey does not give results,” Kalin said. “European politicians should know this by now.”
Erdogan tweeted over the weekend that Turkey believed the dispute might be resolved through dialogue while still defending its rights in the region.
“We want to give diplomacy as much space as possible, by listening to every sincere call,” he tweeted. “With this vision, we will continue to defend any drop of water and area of our country to the end.”
By Dominic Evans & Irem Koca
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