NATO to host Greek-Turkish meeting in Brussels

Representatives from Greece and Turkey are due to meet at NATO headquarters in Brussels on Tuesday for technical military talks aimed at de-escalating tension in the eastern Mediterranean, diplomatic sources in Athens said on Monday.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg has been trying to bring the two sides to the table to discuss a “deconflicting mechanism” that would help avert a crisis between the neighbors and NATO allies over maritime and energy rights in the eastern Mediterranean.

Tuesday’s meeting will come two days after Turkey’s Oruc Reis seismic survey ship returned to the port of Antalya and after Ankara allowed a navtext reserving disputed parts of the region for surveys to expire on Saturday, without renewing it.

Turkish pro-government newspaper Yeni Safak had indicated on Sunday that the two moves were the result of efforts by NATO to break the deadlock between Athens and Ankara, though the Turkish ministries of Energy and Defense went on to claim that the Oruc Reis’ return to Antalya was part of its routine maintenance and supply schedule.

Turkey's Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said on Monday that Turkey does not expect the European Union to impose sanctions on it over a dispute with Greece over territorial claims in the eastern Mediterranean Sea.