Turkish Foreign Ministry rejects Greek Pontus claims as ‘baseless’

Foreign Ministry labels the Pontus claims by Greek far-right groups as baseless, calling for Greek politicians to reject this divisive rhetoric

Turkish Foreign Ministry has rejected recent claims by far-right groups in Greece regarding the “Pontus” issue, labeling them as unfounded.

In a statement on Sunday, May 19, the Ministry suggested that the term “Pontus” belongs to ancient times and criticized these claims for aiming to harm Turkish-Greek relations.

“The Pontus claims, put forward by far-right groups in Greece in 1994, 75 years after May 19, 1919, are baseless,” the Ministry stated.

“‘Pontus’ is merely an ancient term. The Pontian activities that emerged at the end of the 19th century are an extension of Greece’s ‘Megali Idea’ plan.”

The Ministry stressed that the issue involves exploiting a historical process that ended with the population exchange between Turks and Greeks.

“These claims aim to damage Turkish-Greek relations and to put the reasonable segments of Greek politics in a difficult position,” the statement continued.

The Foreign Ministry pointed to the recent positive momentum in bilateral relations and called on the Greek government to take a clear stance against irresponsible politicians.

“Our expectation from the Greek government is to take a clear stance against the efforts of some irresponsible politicians to prevent future generations from living in peace and tranquility,” the Ministry urged.

In their statement, the Ministry also reiterated that historical issues should not be used for political gain and emphasized the importance of maintaining and enhancing the positive trajectory in Turkish-Greek relations.

“The subject essentially involves the exploitation of a historic process resulting in the exchange of Turkish and Greek populations, making it the object of unfounded claims,” the Ministry explained.

Source: Newsroom