ANKARA - State Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Mehmet Ali Sahin said on Wednesday that problems between Turkey and Greece regarding the discussions on air space over the Aegean would be solved through peaceful means.
''There is no other alternative,'' Sahin added.
Sahin received Greek Ambassador to Turkey Michael Christides.
Christides gave Sahin a check worth of 200 thousand Euro sent by the Greek government for the Turkish citizens affected by the earthquake which jolted eastern Tunceli province.
Greek Ambassador Christides said that the assistance was symbolic but reflected approach and solidarity between Greek and Turkish nations.
Sahin thanked the Ambassador and the Greek government and said that such natural disasters revealed that the two neighbor countries needed each other.
Support extended by Greece to Turkey in the wake of Marmara and Duzce earthquakes in 1999 and Turkey's assistance to Greece in the earthquake which rocked that country the same year strengthened solidarity between the two nations, Sahin noted.
Sahin said that the assistance would be used to construct buildings in Tunceli.
When a reporter said, ''tension is increasing between Turkey and Greece regarding Aegean air space'' and asked if ''he had concerns that the harsh statements made by the Greek government could harm the positive atmosphere between the two nations,'' Christides said that it was so natural to have such problems between neighbor countries from time to time.
Christides said that the most logical thing was to take up the problems seriously, discuss them, behave pacifistically and reach a result.
He did not want to deal with air problems right now, Christides noted.
Christides said that they were dealing with land problems at the moment.
Noting that they should be sure that the two countries could be in mutual solidarity on the land, Christides suggested that the same solidarity and agreement could also be made in the air.
Expressing his views about the same issue, Sahin said that problems between the two countries were solved peacefully so far and it would be so from now on.
Sahin noted that Turkey was in a serious effort to become EU member and that Greece extended support to Turkey's membership.
''There is no doubt that two countries which will take place in the same union in the future will solve their problems through peaceful means. There is no other alternative,'' Sahin added.
(BRC-AÖ) 18.06.2003