Greek Migration Minister Notis Mitarakis is the latest official from Türkiye's western neighbor to visit the country, TurkicWorld reports citing Daily Sabah. Mitarakis announced that he plans to travel to Türkiye this week; at the same time, Defense Minister Nikos Panagiotopoulos is also expected to be in the country.
Mitarakis said he planned to tour the earthquake-hit region around Hatay province along with Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu on Tuesday. Panagiotopoulos had earlier announced that he would hold talks with Defense Minister Hulusi Akar in Türkiye on the same day.
Observers have witnessed attempts to defuse mutual tensions by the two NATO members since a series of devastating earthquakes hit southeastern Türkiye in early February. They said Greek assistance to its eastern neighbor had contributed to the improved relations. "Ankara has adopted a completely different tone," Greece's Kathimerini newspaper said on Sunday.
Territorial and energy disputes have exacerbated the regional rivalry between the two countries. Still, the two neighbors, which lie on seismic fault lines, also have a tradition of helping each other in natural disasters. For example, the Greek government sent 80 tons of medical and first aid equipment to Türkiye in the aftermath of the Feb. 6 earthquakes.
