Mitsotakis received by Putin for talks in Sochi; east Med, Cyprus issue dominate talks 

A detailed discussion on the situation in the eastern Mediterranean, including strife-plagued Libya, reportedly dominated discussions on Wednesday in the Black Sea city of Sochi between Russian President Vladimir Putin and visiting Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis.

The meeting was Putin’s first with a western leader after his virtual – and closely scrutinized – meeting a day earlier with US President Joe Biden focused exclusively on Ukraine, as Washington has very publicly warned Moscow of a potent response in case of aggression by Russian forces in eastern Ukraine.

The meeting with Mitsotakis, in fact, was slightly delayed by the Russian side.

The Greek leader, a day after attending a three-state summit in Jerusalem with his Israeli counterpart and the president of Cyprus, repeated Athens’ leitmotif of resolving differences with neighboring Turkey on the basis of international law, especially the UN Convention on Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

Putin as well repeated Russian diplomacy’s standing opposition to a two-state solution for the divided island of Cyprus, something rehashed recently by the Erdogan government amid a punishing monetary and economic crisis in Turkey.

In a joint press conference, the Greek premier again pointed to inflammatory rhetoric and aggressive moves by Erdogan-led Turkey, all in contrivance of international law. He also underlined that any discussion over a two-state solution for Cyprus is rejected fully and in principle.

Despite the very complex bilateral relations between Russia and Turkey over the past few years, Moscow has remained steadfast in it position regarding the Cyprus problem, with Wednesday meeting in the Black Sea resort city saying both leaders reiterated their volition over a fair and viable solution to the Cyprus problem based on UNSC resolutions for a bi-zonal and bi-communal federation, with one citizenship and international representation.