Greek soldiers facing espionage charges freed pending trial
TWO Greek soldiers facing espionage charges in Turkey flew home early on Wednesday after a provincial court released them, in a ruling Athens said would help to improve strained ties between the two Nato allies.
Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras’ office said his plane flew the soldiers back to Thessaloniki, where they were received by the defence minister. The soldiers crossed into Turkey in March, in what Greece said was an accident while they were following the trail of suspected illegal migrants.
But a court in the western province of Edirne ordered their detention the same month on suspicion of attempted military espionage.
The same court ruled for their release on Tuesday after they said in a defence statement they had crossed the border by mistake, state news agency Anadolu said. The conditions of their release were not immediately clear.
Mr Tsipras welcomed the ruling. “The release of the two Greek officers is an act of justice which will contribute to friendship, good neighbourly relations and stability in the region,” his office said in a statement.
Long-time regional rivals Turkey and Greece have been at odds over a host of issues from ethnically divided Cyprus to rights in the Aegean Sea.
But following a meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on the sidelines of a Nato summit in July, Mr Tsipras said they had agreed to focus efforts on easing tensions in the Aegean.
In Brussels, European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker said he was delighted by news of the Greek soldiers’ imminent release.
“As I said [before] Turkey has nothing to fear from its European neighbours. We want to see a democratic, stable and prosperous Turkey,” he posted on his Twitter feed.