NATO Members Greece, Türkiye Pledge to ‘Reset’ Ties and Bypass Longstanding Disputes

In this photo provided by the Greek Prime Minister's Office, Greece's Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, left, shakes hands with Türkiye’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan during their meeting at the NATO Summit, in Vilnius, Lithuania, Wednesday, July 12, 2023. (Greek Prime Minister's Office via AP)
In this photo provided by the Greek Prime Minister's Office, Greece's Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, left, shakes hands with Türkiye’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan during their meeting at the NATO Summit, in Vilnius, Lithuania, Wednesday, July 12, 2023. (Greek Prime Minister's Office via AP)
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NATO Members Greece, Türkiye Pledge to ‘Reset’ Ties and Bypass Longstanding Disputes

In this photo provided by the Greek Prime Minister's Office, Greece's Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, left, shakes hands with Türkiye’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan during their meeting at the NATO Summit, in Vilnius, Lithuania, Wednesday, July 12, 2023. (Greek Prime Minister's Office via AP)
In this photo provided by the Greek Prime Minister's Office, Greece's Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, left, shakes hands with Türkiye’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan during their meeting at the NATO Summit, in Vilnius, Lithuania, Wednesday, July 12, 2023. (Greek Prime Minister's Office via AP)

Greece is ready to “reset” relations with neighbor Türkiye in an effort to bypass decades-old disputes between the two NATO members, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said Wednesday.

Mitsotakis held an hourlong meeting Wednesday with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on the sidelines of a NATO summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, and told reporters they had agreed to continue high-level contacts.

“Our problems have not been magically resolved,” Mitsotakis said. “But today’s meeting confirmed my intention and that of President Erdogan to reset Greek-Turkish relations.”

Cabinet ministers from the two sides are due to meet after the summer in the northern Greek city of Thessaloniki, Mitsotakis said.

Wednesday's talks were held a day after Türkiye dropped its objections to Sweden’s membership in NATO and signaled further willingness to lower tension with Western nations, including Greece.

Türkiye and Greece remain at odds over maritime boundaries in the eastern Mediterranean, a dispute that affects illegal migration into the European Union, mineral rights, and the projection of military power.

Both NATO members are seeking to upgrade their air forces with assistance from the United States: Ankara wants new and upgraded F-16 fighter jets, while Athens is keen to join the F-35 program.

The defense ministers of Greece and Türkiye, Nikos Dendias and Yasar Guler, held a separate meeting in Vilnius on Wednesday.



Russia, Ukraine Complete Second Round of Prisoner Exchange

Ukrainian prisoners of war (POWs) react following a prisoner swap at an undisclosed location, Ukraine, 10 June 2025. (EPA)
Ukrainian prisoners of war (POWs) react following a prisoner swap at an undisclosed location, Ukraine, 10 June 2025. (EPA)
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Russia, Ukraine Complete Second Round of Prisoner Exchange

Ukrainian prisoners of war (POWs) react following a prisoner swap at an undisclosed location, Ukraine, 10 June 2025. (EPA)
Ukrainian prisoners of war (POWs) react following a prisoner swap at an undisclosed location, Ukraine, 10 June 2025. (EPA)

Russia and Ukraine said Tuesday they had exchanged captured soldiers, the second stage of an agreement struck at peace talks last week for each side to free more than 1,000 prisoners.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Tuesday's exchange saw "the return of our injured and severely wounded warriors from Russian captivity."

Neither side said how many soldiers had been freed in the swap -- the second in as many days following another exchange on Monday.

The two sides had agreed in Istanbul last week to release all wounded soldiers and all under the age of 25.

Russia's defense ministry said: "In accordance with the Russian-Ukrainian agreements reached on June 2 in Istanbul, the second group of Russian servicemen was returned."

Zelensky said further exchanges would follow.

"The exchanges are to continue. We are doing everything we can to find and return every single person who is in captivity."

The agreement had appeared in jeopardy over the weekend, with both sides trading accusations of attempting to thwart the exchange.

Russia says Ukraine has still not agreed to collect the bodies of killed soldiers, after Moscow said more than 1,200 corpses were waiting in refrigerated trucks near the border.

Russia said it had agreed to hand over the remains of 6,000 killed Ukrainian soldiers, while Kyiv said it would be an "exchange".

Moscow and Kyiv have carried out dozens of prisoner exchanges since Russia invaded in 2022, triggering Europe's largest conflict since World War II.