Turkey's ambassador on Tuesday urged Greece to swiftly return eight military officers who fled across the border after last week's failed coup, warning the affair could harm bilateral relations.
Failure to return the officers "will not help" ties, Turkish ambassador Kerim Uras told reporters in Athens.
"I hope we will manage to swiftly go through the phases of due process and manage to return these terrorist elements so that they will face justice," Uras said.
The eight men, who arrived by military helicopter on Saturday after sending a distress signal to authorities at the airport in the northern city of Alexandroupolis, are to face trial for illegal entry on Thursday.
"I think it was a mistake to accept them in the first place," the ambassador said, arguing that Greek authorities could have asked the helicopter to land near a Turkish facility.
According to their lawyer, Ilia Marinaki, the Turkish soldiers -- two commanders, four captains and two sergeants -- fear for their safety and that of their families after the failed coup attempt against President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
They claim to have fled after being fired upon by police.
To block their deportation to Turkey, they have applied for asylum in Greece.
Uras bristled at the suggestion that the officers would not be treated fairly at home.
"We take offence for such reporting because needless to say, they will face a fair trial. It will be totally transparent," he said...
[i24news.tv by AFP]
19/7/16
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Failure to return the officers "will not help" ties, Turkish ambassador Kerim Uras told reporters in Athens.
"I hope we will manage to swiftly go through the phases of due process and manage to return these terrorist elements so that they will face justice," Uras said.
The eight men, who arrived by military helicopter on Saturday after sending a distress signal to authorities at the airport in the northern city of Alexandroupolis, are to face trial for illegal entry on Thursday.
"I think it was a mistake to accept them in the first place," the ambassador said, arguing that Greek authorities could have asked the helicopter to land near a Turkish facility.
According to their lawyer, Ilia Marinaki, the Turkish soldiers -- two commanders, four captains and two sergeants -- fear for their safety and that of their families after the failed coup attempt against President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
They claim to have fled after being fired upon by police.
To block their deportation to Turkey, they have applied for asylum in Greece.
Uras bristled at the suggestion that the officers would not be treated fairly at home.
"We take offence for such reporting because needless to say, they will face a fair trial. It will be totally transparent," he said...
[i24news.tv by AFP]
19/7/16
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