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WORLD NEWS Saturday 9 december 2017
On historic trip, Turkey’s Erdogan meets Muslims in Greece

Turkey and Greece. fiasco that had handed
That’s how we see you,” he Erdogan a platform to at-
said. tack Greek policy.
Officials in Athens had The two NATO allies have
hoped Erdogan’s visit come to the brink of war
could help ease the strains several times during the
between Turkey and Euro- last four decades over dis-
pean countries, but in pub- puted boundaries in the
lic statements, Erdogan Aegean Sea and the war-
and Greek officials raised divided island of Cyprus.
longstanding grievances. On Friday, Erdogan walked
“The Greek government through Komotini handing
undertook a bold initiative out toys to children and
to invite the Turkish presi- greeting supporters. He
dent to Athens,” govern- also met two Muslim clerics
ment spokesman Dimitris who are not officially rec-
Tzanakopoulos told Cypriot ognized by the state.
television. Security was tight in the
A frank exchange of views, town ahead of the visit,
he said, would ultimately with roads blocked off, a
help improve relations be- heavy police presence
tween the two often un- and a police helicopter cir-
easy neighbors. cling overhead.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan waves to the crowd as he goes to Minority School in the “It is the first visit by a Turkish Erdogan earlier rattled his
northeastern Greek town of Komotini, Friday, Dec. 8, 2017. Erdogan met Friday with members of
Greece’s Muslim minority on the second day of a visit to the country that saw tensions in bilateral president in 65 years, and hosts in Athens by saying
relations resurface. there was obviously a lot of the 1923 treaty that set the
(AP Photo/Giannis Papanikos) attention ... Given the im- borders of modern Turkey
portance of this visit, I think and outlined the status of
By COSTAS KANTOURIS and saw tensions in rela- a Turkish-language school. things went very well,” he minorities — the Muslim mi-
Associated Press tions resurface. “There are close to 150,000 said. nority in Greece and the
KOMOTINI, Greece (AP) Erdogan attended prayers of our kinsmen. Greek opposition parties Greek minority in Turkey —
— Turkish President Re- at the Kirmahalle Cam- Our kinsmen. called the two-day visit a should be “updated.”q
cep Tayyip Erdogan met mi mosque in the north- You are a bridge between
with members of Greece’s eastern town of Komotini,
Muslim minority on Friday, where he was greeted by
ending a landmark visit to several thousand support-
Greece that sharply divid- ers chanting his name. He
ed opinion in the country spoke to the crowd outside

Protests in Ukraine raise the

specter of another uprising

By YURAS KARMANAU sprawling encampments
IULIIA SUBBOTOVSKA that filled parts of down-
Associated Press town in the 2014 dem-
KIEV, Ukraine (AP) — In the onstrations and the 2004
raw cold and winter rain, Orange Revolution that
Serhiy Hrey stood amid a forced a rerun of a fraudu-
protest tent camp outside lent presidential election.
Ukraine’s parliament, mak- But the current protests,
ing firebombs and declar- focusing on Ukraine’s en-
ing his readiness to fight. demic corruption, tap a
He’s tougher now than dur- deep strain of discontent
ing the massive 2014 pro- in a country prone to up-
tests that drove Ukraine’s heaval. They are spear-
pro-Russia president to flee headed by a man of pre-
the country, he says. He ternatural energy and self-
fought for a year in the war assurance who has already
against Russian-backed overthrown one regime.
separatist rebels in eastern Curiously, the man is not
Ukraine that broke out a a citizen of Ukraine or any
few weeks after those pro- other country. He’s Mikheil
tests. Saakashvili, the former
“Back then, we just had president of Georgia, who
stones and sticks. Now most lost citizenship in his home-
of us are military men — we land when he moved to
have been to war and we Ukraine to become gover-
have nothing to lose,” the nor of the Odessa region,
55-year-old said. then was stripped of that
The protesters have set up status this summer by his
a few dozen tents, a far former patron, President
smaller showing than the Petro Poroshenko.q