Turkish PM calls for bilateral arms cuts on historic visit to Greece
Two-day talks aim for sea change in relations but Turkish air force jets stage provocation as trip begins.
Greek and Turkish flags fly at the Greek Parliament Photograph: Louisa Gouliamaki/AFP/Getty Images
Turkey's red and white flag flew over the Greek parliament in Athens todayyesterday as the Turkish prime minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, began a historic trip to the debt-stricken neighbour.
The extraordinary lengths to which George Papandreou, the Greek prime minister, went to embrace his counterpart highlighted a sea change in relations between the regional rivals.
Shortly after his arrival in the capital, Erdogan insisted that the two-day visit "would have a different finale", offering hope of progress in political and economic matters. By mid-afternoon, he had not only officially raised the once unthinkable – a cut in arms spending on both sides – but had used the occasion to have an unprecedented 21 bilateral accords signed.
The agreements, reached after a groundbreaking joint cabinet meeting attended by the 10 ministers travelling with the Islamist leader, aim to boost mutual co-operation in fields ranging from tourism, technology, transportation, energy, illegal migration and organised crime.
"We are determined to move ahead with reconciliation," said Papandreou, a progressive socialist whose efforts, as a past foreign minister, to forge better ties with Greece's longtime Nato foe have won him widespread public support in Turkey. "As these agreements show, this is a historic day."
The switch in policy between neighbours who nearly went to war three times – including most recently in 1996 over a goat-inhabited Aegean isle – comes at a time of acute economic crisis for Athens and spectacular economic success for Ankara.
With growth rates of more than 5%, well in excess of the European average, Turkey is not only a regional superpower, determined to extend its influence and reach into the Middle East and beyond, but is bent on improving relations with all its neighbours.
"We we want to be good neighbours," said Erdogan as he visited the Greek parliament. "As a good friend we will stand by you in solidarity."
In times gone by, most Greeks might not have believed him. As a nation carved out of the ashes of the Ottoman empire, many Greeks still bear grudges towards their former masters, including over the "catastrophe" of their expulsion from Asia Minor in 1922 and Turkey's invasion of Cyprus in 1974.
Persistent territorial disputes in the Aegean – the sea the two countries share – and frequent violations by Turkish frigates and fighter planes of Greek sea and air space have contributed to the tensions.
Yesterday, as Erdogan and his wife Emine were flying to Athens, six Turkish F16s reportedly engaged in mock dog fights with Greek jets – a display of force by the military in Ankara that analysts said was aimed squarely at embarrassing the Turkish leader.
Turkey's generals have long been at odds with Erdogan, a reformist neo-Islamist, with the power struggle intensifying in recent months after the discovery of a military-backed coup plot to topple the government.
Prior to the visit, Egemen Bagis, the state minister handling Turkey's EU negotiations, took the extraordinary step of admitting in an interview with Greek public television that the air violations were "as much of a problem for the Turkish government as they are for Greece".
Acutely aware of the drain on the Greek economy of military operation costs, Athens is eager to scale back its arms procurement programmes. Greece allocates nearly 5% of its national budget to arms spending – more than any other EU member – with the stockpile aimed almost exclusively at Turkish targets.
In his talks with Papandreou, Erdogan insisted that the neighbours should agree to disarm in the Aegean. "Both countries have huge defence expenses and they will achieve a lot of savings in this way," he told Greek television.
Greek officials say they will seriously contemplate such a move when the violations stop and Turkey proves it is no longer a threat.
On a business level, however, Greeks and Turks are forming ever closer ties.
"The agreements that have been signed today are worth hundreds of millions of euro in business," Erol User, who heads Turkey's largest investment bank, told the Guardian. "Politicians should think like businessmen," said the entrepreneur, one of 90 CEOs accompanying Erdogan.
"The Greeks are our friends and we are here to help them.Many Turks are praying for Papandreou's success … Whatever happened in the past is the past."
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/may/14/turkish-pm-greece-arms-cuts
here you go bir and bananiot...and before you go bending over try and find out who is screwing you...
a couple questions though highlighted in the article...
1...who the hell is running turkey?
2...and with whom is pres x negotiating?
3...and from whom the tcs are taking orders?