Panel Discussion with Journalists from Greece on the Occasion of the Greek Presidency of the Council of the EU
On the occasion of the Greek Presidency of the Council of the EU, Global Political Trends Center, in collaboration with the Turkish-Greek Association Defne & Dafni, organized a panel discussion with five prominent journalists from Greece.
The panelists, which we hosted in Istanbul included:
- Yannis Laskarakis, Gnomi Newspaper
- Sami Karabuyukoglou, ERT - freelance journalist
- Yannis Sidiropoulos, TV 6
- Prof. Yannis Nikolaou, Trakya University – Political Science
- Paskalis Ksanthopoulos, Ksanthi FEX Museum
Co-financed by the Open Society Foundation in Turkey, the event took place on 31st January 2014 on the premises of Istanbul Kütür University with the participation of approximately 50 media representatives, students, academics, civil society activists, and experts. The meeting was also attended by Consul Victor Maligoudis of the Greek Consulate General in Istanbul and a representative of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of the Orthodox Christian Church.
Moderated by the Head of Defne & Dafne and High Advisory Board member of GPoT Center, Amb. Yalım Eralp, the panel discussions focused on a variety of topics with regards to political, cultural, economic and social relations between Greece and Turkey.
The speakers addressed topics such as prospects of bilateral collaboration in solving ecological problems, trust building between the two publics, cultural diplomacy, the Cyprus question, and Turkey’s accession negotiations with the EU.
The speakers agreed that Greece and Turkey have a long history of relations and that a forward looking approach is essential for the strengthening of their bilateral ties.