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Tsipras at the EU Summit: Increased Turkish aggression in the Aegean

The issue of increasing Turkish aggression in the Aegean and unsubstantiated statements on the part of Ankara, was raised by PM Alexis Tsipras at the EU Summit.

Mr. Tsipras stressed that the increasing aggressiveness of Turkey undermines the trust that must exist and said that Greece will continue to protect its sovereign rights while maintaining the dialogue with the neighboring country.

Referring to the refugee issue he stressed the need for full implementation of the European Union - Turkey Agreement, and called for the reinstatement of the EU enlargement policy in the Western Balkans, noting that Greece simultaneously expects neighboring countries to respect good neighborly principles and international law.

Also on the refugee issue, the Greek prime minister complained about the delay in setting up the EASO (European Asylum Support Office) and the insufficient implementation of the resettlement scheme.

He stressed the need to revise the Treaty of Dublin more fairly in order not to place the burden on first entry countries and added that the actions of Greece are continuous in the direction of the EU-Turkey Agreement.

On the sidelines of the EU summit Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras met with Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades.

The meeting between the two men lasted 45 minutes, during which they discussed the Cyprus issue, developments in bilateral Greek-Turkish relations, trilateral cooperation between Greece and Cyprus with Israel, Egypt and Jordan, as well as European issues that concerned the Summit.