Athens, 22/04/2002 (Agence Europe) - Last Friday, during his visit to Greece and after meeting the Greek government and the opposition, CFSP High Representative Javier Solana again stressed the need to find a solution to the row between Greece and Turkish as quickly as possible. Their dispute prevents any conclusion to an agreement on the use of NATO assets for EU-led peace-keeping operations (Greece rejects the solution found to the Turkish objections thanks to American-British mediation). "We should be able to have a clear signal" during the NATO ministerial meeting on 14 May in Rejkjavik, Mr Solana told the press. He added: "The sooner we get it done the better. To finalise an agreement between the European Union and NATO is fundamental". At his meeting with Javier Solana, also attended by Foreign Minister George Papandreou, Greek Prime Minister Costas Simitis repeated, according to the Greek press agency ANA, that Athens wants a solution that protects the interests of the EU and of its members and ensures equal standing.
Costas Simitis also brought these issues up with NATO Secretary General Lord Robertson. Still according to the ANA, he pointed out that Greece was discussing "constructive proposals" aimed at reaching a solution, while repeating he could not accept the "Ankara text" as such.