There is mutual representation on the Embassy level. Greece has additional consular authorities in Istanbul, Izmir and Edirne, while Turkey maintains consulates in Piraeus, Thessaloniki, Komotini and Rhodes.
Political Relations
From the founding of the modern Greek state (1830) until today, Greek-Turkish relations have been through many phases; times of conflict, tension, calm and cooperation.
The Treaty of Lausanne brought to an end a decade of war that was very painful for Hellenism in Turkey. The agreements reached in the Treaty of Lausanne – including a mandatory population exchange – constitute the basic framework governing the relations and territorial status of the two countries.
The 1930s saw inspired efforts by the leaders of the two countries – Eleftherios Venizelos and Mustafa Kemal Ataturk – to establish friendly relations of trust between Greece and Turkey.
However, from the end of WWII until the early 1970s, relations between the two countries were dominated by the Cyprus problem, on the one hand, and by persecution of the Greek minority in Turkey, culminating in the events of 1955, which resulted in the decimation of said minority.
The early 1970s saw the beginning of an extended phase of tension in Greek-Turkish relations that has lasted until today, with two main axes:
The attempt by Turkey to revise and change the territorial status quo set down in the Treaty of Lausanne and other international treaties, as well as the legal status of maritime zones and airspace deriving from international law, through the raising of disputes and claims against the sovereignty, the sovereign rights and the jurisdiction of Greece.
The Turkish invasion of Cyprus in July 1974 and the subsequent Turkish occupation of the northern portion of Cyprus, which continues to this day.
Since then, relations between the two countries have at times been on the brink of armed conflict (crisis of March 1987 and Imia crisis of December 1996), due to Turkish contentions and claims that are groundless and conflict with international law.
In 1999 – in the light of chronic problems and on the occasion of two disastrous earthquakes that hit the two countries – a process of Greek-Turkish rapprochement was initiated, running, on a bilateral level, along three main axes:
The development of bilateral cooperation in soft policy sectors; that is, dispute-free sectors: economy and trade, tourism, culture, civil society, etc. A contractual framework was created, consisting of some 25 agreements, and joint committees and working groups were set up under the coordination and periodic assessment of the Steering Committee. This has functioned satisfactorily.
The reduction of tension – particularly military – through the improvement of the psychological climate and contacts between the armed forces of the two countries via confidence-building measures. To date, 29 such measures have been agreed upon and implemented.
Exploring the potential for an agreed settlement – through exploratory contacts – of the issue of the delimitation of the continental shelf.
The rapprochement process has also been expressed through firm support for Turkey’s European perspective.
In October 2009 the newly elected Greek government initiated an effort to impart new momentum to the rapprochement process. To this end, a new mechanism for promoting and structuring cooperation between the two countries in soft policy areas was created: the High-Level Cooperation Council (HLCC), which was inaugurated during Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan’s visit to Athens on 14 May 2010.
Embassy in Ankara
Address : Zia Ur Rahman cad 9-11, Gaziosmanpasa 06700 Ankara
Tel. : (0090312) 4480647, 4480387
Fax : (0090312) 4463191
E-mail : gremb.ank@mfa.gr
Web site: www.mfa.gr/ankara
Ambassador: Kyriakos Loukakis
Consular Office in Ankara
Address : Zia Ur Rahman cad 9-11, Gaziosmanpasa 06700 Ankara
Tel. : (0090312) 4360419
Fax : 4463191
E-mail : grcon.ank@mfa.gr
Web site: www.mfa.gr/ankara
Head of Consular Section : Dimitrios Sofos
Commercial Section in Ankara
Address: Turan Emeksiz sok. Park Sitesi A Blok 3/10 G.O.P. 06700
Tel.: (0090-312) 4278307
Fax: (0090-312) 4278374
E-mail: ecocom-ankara@mfa.gr
Web Site: http://agora.mfa.gr/ts111
Head: Christina Argyropoulou
Consulate General in Istanbul
Address : Turnacibaci Sokak 22-Beyoglu 34433, Istanbul-Turkey
Tel. : (0090212) 3938290-1-2, 3938294
Fax : (0090 212) 252 1365
E-mail : grgencon.kon@mfa.gr
Web Site: www.mfa.gr/istanbul
Consul General : Evangelos Sekeris
Commercial Section in Istanbul
Address : Turnacibasi sokak 22, TR-34433 Beyoglu, Istanbul – Turkey
Tel. : (0090212) 2452231
Fax : 2927119
E-mail : ecocom-istanbul@mfa.gr , gr.econtrade@comnet.com.tr
Web Site: http://agora.mfa.gr/tr112
Head : Doukas Marinopoulos
Consulate General of Greece in Istanbul – Tourism Office
Cumhuriyet Street No 181 34373, 5th Floor, Harbiye – Istanbul
Tel.: (+90 212) 368 87 86
Fax: (+90 212) 234 86 87
E-mail: rachmanidoum@gmail.com
Director: Maria Rachmanidou
Consulate General in Izmir
Address : Ataturk Caddesi 262, Alsancak-35220 Izmir
Tel. : (0090232) 4643160
Fax : 4633393
Emergency Tel: 0090232 4643160/ 0090 5412609090
E-mail : grgencon.smy@mfa.gr
Web Site: www.mfa.gr/izmir
Head : Theodore Tsakiris
Consulate in Edirne
Address : Şükrüpaşa Mah. Sok. 123, No:2-Edirne
Tel. : (0090284) 2355804
Fax : 2355808
Emergency Tel: 0090 5335573413
E-mail : grcon.adr@mfa.gr
Web site: www.mfa.gr/edirne
Consul : Paraskeui Charitidou
Embassy of Turkey in Greece
8 Vas. Georgiou St
106 74 Athens
Tel +30 2107245915-7 Fax:+30 2107229597
Consulate: 22 Vas. Pavlou St.
154 52 Paleo Psychico
Tel +30 2106714828 Fax:+30 2106876430
Visa: 09:00-13:00
Consulate of Turkey in Greece
22, Vas. Pavlou str.
154 52 P. Psychico
Tel.: 210.67.14.828, 210.67.21.153
Fax: 210.67.76.430
info@tutkishembasy.ondsl.gr
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