A new era began in Turkish-Greek relations as of 1999, marked with the establishment of various dialogue mechanisms such as regular political consultations, exploratory contacts on Aegean Issues, High Level Cooperation Council meetings as well as high-level visits and contacts. While seeking settlement to long-standing problems with Greece by means of bilateral dialogue mechanisms, Türkiye aims at enhancing bilateral relations in every possible field and attaches importance to the implementation of tangible projects to the benefit of two countries.

In 2010, the High-Level Cooperation Council (HLCC) between Türkiye and Greece was set up thanks to a Turkish initiative. The HLCC aims at addressing various issues of Turkish-Greek relations at a high level, thus contributing to progress in existing and prospective areas of cooperation, and rendering an “institutional” ground for Turkish-Greek relations. Five HLCC meetings have so far been held. The first meeting in Athens on May 14 and 15, 2010; the second meeting in Istanbul on March 4, 2013; the third meeting in Athens on December 6, 2014, the fourth meeting in Izmir on March 8, 2016 and the most recent one in Athens on December 7, 2023. 70 agreements/protocols/MoUs were signed during those meetings.

The “Athens Declaration on Friendly Relations and Good Neighborliness” signed between President Erdoğan and Prime Minister Mitsotakis during the 5 ^th HLCC laid a solid foundation for the future of relations.

President Erdoğan paid an official visit to Greece, including Athens and Komotini, on December 7 and 8, 2017. This was the first official visit at the level of heads of state between Türkiye and Greece since 1952.

High-level visits picked up momentum over the last couple of years in the framework of the positive agenda between the two countries. President Erdoğan visited Athens on 7 December 2023 on the occasion of the 5 ^th HLCC. Upon the invitation of President Erdoğan, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis paid a working visit to Türkiye on 13 May 2024.

Various meetings between Ministers of Foreign Affairs and other Ministers take place on the occasion of visits and on the margins of international events.

Political Dialogue Meetings at the Deputy Minister level between the Ministries of Foreign Affairs of the two countries are being held regularly. The last Political Dialogue Meeting was held in Ankara on March 11, 2024.

All economic and trade issues between Türkiye and Greece are discussed comprehensively through the Joint Economic Commission (JEC) meetings. The 6 ^th Meeting of the Turkey-Greece Joint Economic Commission (JEC) was held in Istanbul on February 2, 2024 and a business forum was organized in cooperation with DEIK-Enterprise Greece after the meeting. A Joint Business Council was established with the agreement signed between DEIK and the Association of Greek Chambers of Commerce in May 2024.

Furthermore, the two countries put a Joint Action Plan (JAP) into practice in 2021 in order to improve our relations on a range of issues, particularly in the economic and commercial areas, within the framework of the positive agenda approach. The first of the JAP meetings, which are held at the level of Deputy Foreign Ministers, was held in Kavala on 28-29 May 2021. The most recent (6^th) JAP meeting was held in Istanbul on April 26, 2024.

Commercial and economic relations with Greece have gained momentum since 1999. The establishment of the HLCC mechanism in 2010 in particular has paved the way for a substantial increase in commercial relations. The bilateral trade volume thus doubled between 2010 and 2014, reaching 5.6 billion USD by the end of 2014. Although the bilateral trade volume decreased in 2015 and 2016, it gained momentum in 2017 (3.5 billion USD) and amounted to 4.18billion USD in 2018. The total trade volume between two countries was 3.72 billion USD in 2019 and 3.12 billion USD in 2020 due to the negative effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

However, our trade volume began to rise in 2021 and reached 5.8 billion USD in 2023. In 2023, the trade balance between the two countries was approximately USD 2.5 billion in the favor of Türkiye. The goal of increasing our trade volume to USD 10 billion was set within the framework of the 5 ^th HLCC.

Transport is another field where both sides wish to intensify their cooperation. The planned construction of a second bridge at the İpsala-Kipi border gate will pave the way for an intensified cooperation in road transport between Türkiye and Greece.

Tourism is one of the promising fields of cooperation between the two countries. The number of tourists, which has displayed a positive trend in recent years, is expected to increase further. In 2023, approximately 890 thousand tourists from Türkiye visited Greece and around 686 thousand tourists from Greece visited Türkiye.

Greece first applied the procedure of issuing visas at border gates for Turkish citizens visiting the Greek islands between 2012 and 2019. As of 2024, Greece reintroduced the above mentioned visa procedure for 10 islands [Lesvos (Lesvos), Kalymnos (Kalymnos), Limni (Lemnos), Kos (Kos), Chios (Chios), Samos (Samos), Leros (Leros), Rhodes, Symi (Symi) and Kastelorizo (Meis)]. The procedure does not cover transit to mainland Greece and airports, but applies to passengers traveling by sea between Turkish and Greek ports.

There are some issues between Türkiye and Greece concerning the Aegean Sea.