Pompeo visit: why Turkey chooses Thessaloniki and Souda – Reacts



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A visit with many messages is that of the Secretary of State of the United States, Mike Pompeo.

Pompeo will make his first stop in Thessaloniki and then visit Crete.

On Monday morning he will meet Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias at the Macedonian-Thracian Ministry, while in the afternoon he will arrive in Chania, where he will be received by Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis at his home in Akrotiri.

Together with the Prime Minister, they will visit the base in Souda on Tuesday morning.

The choice of these two areas is of particular importance.

Thessaloniki is at the heart of America’s new plans for the Balkans alongside Alexandroupolis, while Souda is among the new plans to enhance the entire NATO mission in the region.

On the way to Greece, Pompeo sent a message via Twitter.

“On the way back to Europe, to strengthen our already strong bilateral relations and the importance of ongoing regional cooperation. First stop: Thessaloniki, Greece.”

He also reported that he spoke with the secretary general. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg on reducing tensions in the eastern Mediterranean and the importance of unity in the NATO alliance.

The secretary general will also visit Athens and Ankara. NATO, probably after the Summit.

Turkey’s reaction

Ankara regards Pompeo’s visit to Greece and not Turkey as a message from the United States and they do not appreciate it, especially regarding the Souda update.

Erdogan, after accusing Greece and the Republic of Cyprus of having maximalist positions and that they are to blame for the situation in the Eastern Mediterranean, shows a pacifist tendency, saying that a solution can also be found in the energy sector.

He claims that a fund can be created without solving the Cyprus problem and thus distribute the income from energy resources. She is in favor of dialogue, she said in a letter to the EU, sending a message that no sanctions should be imposed on Turkey.

Source: skai.gr



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