He referred to Greek-Turkish relations and the pre-election period in Greece Recep Tayyip Erdogan, speaking today to journalists on his return from New York and the UN General Assembly.
“Turkey is not an enemy of Greece, it is its neighbor and its ally under the NATO umbrella,” the Turkish president said as reported by Open. “The relations between the two countries are far too delicate and important to become the subject of pre-election exploitation.”
Responding to a question about the rhetoric concerning Turkey ahead of the Greek elections, he said that Ankara has no reason to interfere in Greece's domestic politics. The statement is in the same line as his speech at the General Assembly, where he had said that Turkey wishes the issues in the Aegean and the Eastern Mediterranean to be resolved “on the basis of good neighborly relations and in accordance with international law,” while at the same time he had called on the international community to recognize the occupied territories.
Erdogan appeared optimistic about Turkey's return to the program for the American fighter jets, from which it was excluded because of the Russian S-400 systems. As he said, Donald Trump “showed positive willingness for Turkey's return to the F-35 program,” and Ankara is now waiting for this to be turned into a concrete move. It is recalled that the two leaders did not have a bilateral meeting in New York, although it had been announced in advance.