Greece & US to discuss E. Mediterranean tensions as Turkey wants to resolve dispute with Athens ‘through dialogue’

The foreign ministers of Greece and the United States will meet in Vienna on Friday to discuss tensions in the Eastern Mediterranean, the Foreign Ministry in Athens said. The statement comes amid a dispute between Athens and Ankara over hydrocarbon resources.

The meeting between Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo will take days after Turkey dispatched the seismic survey vessel 'Oruc Reis' to an area of sea claimed by both nations, Reuters reports.

In Ankara, Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said on Wednesday that Turkey wants to resolve a dispute with Greece over energy exploration in the Eastern Mediterranean through dialogue. He added, however, that Ankara would defend its rights and interests in the region.