Greece welcomes Turkish survey ship’s return to Med Sea port

The Greek government welcomed a Turkish survey
vessel’s return to port Sunday from a disputed area of the eastern
Mediterranean that has been at the heart of a summer stand-off between Greece
and Turkey over energy rights.
The Oruc Reis research ship returned to near the
southern Turkish port of Antalya for the first time in more than a month after
Turkey announced in July that it was dispatching a vessel to work in waters
that Greece claims are its exclusive jurisdiction.
“This is a positive signal. We will see how this
develops to make a proper assessment,″
Greek government spokesman Stelios Petsas told TV channel Skai.
The ship returned to Antalya after its Navtex, or
international maritime safety advisory, for the waters between Turkey, Cyprus
and the Greek island of Crete it had been in since Aug. 10 expired.
The dispute over potential oil and gas reserves has
triggered a military build-up in the eastern Mediterranean. Nominal NATO allies
Turkey and Greece both dispatched warships to the area where the Oruc Reis was
engaged in seismic research and conducted military exercises to assert their
claims.
NATO intervened, organizing talks between the two
countries’ militaries to prevent a potential armed conflict.
Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said Sunday in
Antalya’s district of Kas that Turkey supports peace and dialogue “if our
wishes and demands are fulfilled.”
Greek President Katerina Sakellaropoulou was
visiting the Greek island of Kastellorizo, located directly across the
Mediterranean from Kas, at the same time.