Greece has strong allies, says premier amid tensions with Türkiye

Amid ongoing tensions with Türkiye, Greece's prime minister said on Tuesday that Greece has strong allies.

Athens also possesses strong deterrent capabilities that it has bolstered over the past three years, Kyriakos Mitsotakis said in an interview with public broadcaster ERT.

Caught in a row with Ankara over Athens' arming various islands in the Aegean Sea that have non-military status according to international treaties, Mitsotakis said Greece could not maintain dialogue with Türkiye if it insists on the "absurd stance" of disarmament.

He claimed that Ankara is deliberately escalating tensions with Greece to deflect attention from internal problems.

Asked about Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's recent declaration that he would hold no more meetings with the Greek premier, Mitsotakis said he would be willing to meet and speak with Erdogan if Ankara steps back from its demands for de-militarization.

He said ties between Greece and Türkiye have fluctuated throughout history, but he would look forward to stable and good and neighborly relations with Ankara.

Türkiye in recent months has stepped up criticism of Greece stationing troops on islands in the eastern Aegean, near the Turkish coast and in many cases visible from shore.

These islands were required to be demilitarized under the 1923 Treaty of Lausanne and the 1947 Treaty of Paris, so any troops or weapons on the islands are strictly forbidden.