Dendias to meet Pompeo in Vienna

Athens says it will not accept a fait accompli in the Eastern Mediterranean, with reports saying Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias is set to meet US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in Vienna on Friday.

According to Kathimerini Greece, Dendias was understood to have a scheduled meeting on Friday in Vienna with Pompeo, while no more details were immediately available.

The Greek foreign minister has called on the Ankara to recall its research ship from contested waters, with reports on the intended course of the seismic vessel Oruc Reis not fully clear.

But by late Tuesday, there were no indications of a broader de-escalation of tensions in the region, as Greece and Turkey are caught in a standoff over contested maritime zones and exploratory activities.

Greece has repeatedly urged Turkey to stop its operations in an area that Athens says it overlaps with the country’s continental shelf.

“We will not accept a fait accompli, there will be no tolerance. Greece will defend its [territorial] integrity and sovereign rights,” Dendias said in a statement.

The Greek minister also said he had asked for an emergency meeting of the European Union Foreign Affairs Council to discuss the issue.

Republic of Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades was also briefed on Tuesday by Greek Premier Kyriakos Mitsotakis on the situation.

Government Spokesperson Kyriakos Koushos said in a written statement that Mitsotakis spoke on the phone with Anastasiades, briefing him on the situation and letting him know about contacts the Greek PM had with EU officials and head of states.

European Commission foreign affairs spokesman Peter Stano expressed the EU’s “full solidarity” with both Greece and Cyprus.

“We agree that the situation in the Eastern Mediterranean is extremely worrying and needs to be solved in dialogue and not in a series and sequence of steps that are increasing the escalation and the tension,” he told journalists.