Greek defence minister may snub Ankara summit amid Turkey tensions
Greek Defence Minister Nikos Dendias is unlikely to join a high‑level meeting between the Turkish and Greek leaders in Ankara on Wednesday.
The Greek minister reportedly cited his need to attend an EU defence ministers’ summit in Brussels on the same day, officials told Middle East Eye.
Dendias has emerged as a black sheep withing the Greek cabinet for using his platform to attack Turkey on the international stage.
He has repeatedly made remarks that have irked counterparts in Ankara.
Sources familiar with his thinking believe the Brussels summit is only an excuse to snub the meeting in Ankara, as he wants to position himself as an anti-Turkish hawk in the cabinet.
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A Greek official, however, cautioned that the final list of the attendees from the Greek side wasn’t ready yet, and there could be changes.
Last week, Dendias rebuked Turkey at a Washington think‑tank event during a panel hosted by Greece’s Delphi Economic Forum and the pro-Israel Foundation for Defense of Democracies, accusing Ankara of “advocating for Hamas” and saying it does not share the US vision for the Middle East.
“Remember that 25 years ago Israel and Turkey were the best of friends,” he said. “What has changed?
“Who is advocating for Hamas - really advocating for Hamas? Who has never expressed any regret for what happened on 7 October [2023] in Israel? Who hosts the Muslim Brotherhood?” Dendias added.
Dendias has positioned himself as a hardliner on Turkey, particularly to the right of Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis.
His remarks, however, evoke memories of when Mitsotakis himself publicly lobbied the US Congress against arms sales to Turkey, damaging ties between the Nato allies.
Mitsotakis is set to meet Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara on Wednesday as part of the bilateral High‑Level Cooperation Council's first meeting since 2024.
Tensions between the two Nato allies eased in 2023 after both countries reinstated communication channels, and Ankara halted energy exploration and drilling activities in disputed areas of the Eastern Mediterranean.
However, Dendias’s fiery rhetoric risks triggering another wave of confrontation between the two neighbors.
In January, Dendias said Greece reserves the sovereign and unilateral right to extend its territorial waters to 12 nautical miles.
The statement directly contradicts a 1995 decision by the Turkish parliament, which described such a move as a casus belli - a cause for war.
In response, Turkey last month issued a NavTex, a legal advisory message to mariners, outlining objections to Greece’s activities in the Aegean Sea, which Ankara says violate international law, and calling on Athens to coordinate such actions.
For the first time, Ankara issued the notice without an expiration date. Previous advisories from both sides were temporary and tied to specific activities in the region.
'Greatest threat'
Ankara insiders believe Dendias’s decision not to attend the meeting in Turkey rests on two main factors.
First, due to his hostile rhetoric toward Turkey - including describing it as “the greatest threat” to Greece in December - and his announcement that Greece would further militarise the Aegean islands through the “Achilles’ Shield” project.
Second, criticism has been growing within Greek public opinion that Mitsotakis should not visit Turkey following Ankara’s NavTex declaration and recent Greek reports of an uptick in Turkish airspace violations.
Turkey disputes these claims, saying the incidents occurred in disputed airspace.
Nevertheless, Mitsotakis may be appealing to populist sentiment ahead of next year’s elections, as his standing has recently benefited from tougher rhetoric toward Turkey.
Duygu Leloglu, a correspondent affiliated with CNN Turk, reported on Sunday that Dendias has continued to maintain his anti‑Turkey rhetoric, a stance that has also helped raise his profile in domestic politics.
She added that his views are not new. During his visit to Ankara in April 2021, while serving as foreign minister, Dendias accused Turkey of violating Greece’s sovereign rights at a joint press conference, breaking an agreement between the two ministers to deliver prepared remarks, an episode that significantly heightened tensions between the two countries.
Dendias has also emerged as one of the leading voices in Greece calling for a Greece‑Cyprus‑Israel alliance against Turkey.
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