The Turkish president expressed this opinion in an interview with the Greek newspaper Kathimerini ahead of his official visit to Athens tomorrow.
Asked whether both countries could agree to bring the issue of continental shelf delimitation to the International Court of Justice, Erdogan replied that the issues would be resolved through dialogue and goodwill.
Of course, there are many interconnected issues that need to be resolved besides the continental shelf, he said.
“When we address international justice, we must not ignore any problem and, above all, we must speak boldly on all our issues and correctly guide the opinion of our public,” he stressed.
According to him, it will be extremely crucial as the will of his nation is strong.
Erdogan emphasized the country’s ability to resolve problems peacefully and the sincerity of his approach. If Greece adopts a similar approach without external interference, a start can be made towards building a peaceful future.
Greece and Turkey, both allies of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), came to the brink of war in 1996 over Turkish claims to two uninhabited Greek islands called Imia.
Greece’s territorial waters extend six nautical miles around more than two thousand islands in the Aegean Sea, but Athens claims the right to extend them to twelve nautical miles, a standard recognized in international maritime law.
Ankara, in turn, has repeatedly warned that such a move would be grounds for a declaration of war.
Turkey, for its part, does not recognize Greece’s 10-mile air zone over the islands, as airspace is limited to six miles.
Previously, Turkish warplanes with weapons on board regularly entered a neighboring country’s flight information zone without providing a flight plan, while Greece sent its planes to intercept them.
Turkiye has repeatedly stated that he wants negotiations with Greece on all controversial issues in the Aegean, including the demilitarization of the islands.
Athens declares its willingness to negotiate with Ankara only on defining the boundaries of the exclusive economic zones and to submit the results to the International Court of Justice (UN) in The Hague.
However, in recent months both nations have begun to take steps towards rapprochement as part of building trust and creating a positive bilateral agenda.
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