Turkey's attempt to reverse reality with accusations about minority rights in Thrace
Last month marked the commemoration of the 99th anniversary of the signing of the Lausanne Treaty, a treaty that is at the heart of Greek-Turkish relations - whether we are talking about sovereignty in the Aegean Sea or the rights of minorities in each country. In its efforts to revise the status quo in the region, Turkey has made attempts to re-interpret Lausanne as it sees fit. For example, Ankara has referred to this treaty in an effort to cast a shadow over the sovereignty of Greek islands in the Aegean, and recently is attempting to make an issue with Greece over the rights of the Muslim minority in Thrace. Symeon Tegos, who has extensive experience working in Thrace with the Greek Foreign Ministry, joins me to break down why Ankara’s accusations regarding the Muslim minority in Thrace are unsubstantiated and an attempt to reverse reality.
Symeon Tegos is the newly appointed Consul General of Greece in Boston, and for the last three years served as director of political affairs at the office of the Foreign Ministry in Thrace.
You can read the articles we discuss on our podcast here:
Turkey’s Erdogan rails at Greece over Muslim minority rights
Athens shoots down Turkish allegations over minority schools in Thrace