Greece Rejects Turkey's Accusations Of Violating Rights Of Muslim Minority In Thrace

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 09th December, 2022) The Greek Foreign Ministry denied any violation of rights of the Muslim minority in Greece's eastern Thrace region, an accusation voiced by Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu.

On Thursday, Cavusoglu met with Thracian Muslims and after the meeting accused Greece of breaching the Treaty of Lausanne, which settled post-World War 1 borders between the two countries, by violating the rights of the local Turkish minority. Greece recognizes the presence of a Muslim minority on its territory but not specifically of a Turkish minority.

"Turkey once again distorts reality in Thrace. It is at the very least an oxymoron for a country with a quite poor record on human rights issues to accuse Greece of violating the rights of the Muslim Minority in Thrace," the Greek ministry said in a statement.

Athens fired back with accusing Istanbul itself of violating the Treaty of Lausanne, saying the Turkish government has promoted the erosion of the Greek population in territories it acquired under the 1923 treaty. It specifically cited the shrinking of the Greek population in the islands of Imbros and Tenedos from 130,000 at the time of the signing to less than 3,000 today.

The Greek Foreign Ministry expressed its hope that Turkey will "finally reflect on its responsibilities in the area of minority policy."