Greek, Turkish foreign ministers to meet on Nov. 8, sources say

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ATHENS (Reuters) – Greek Foreign Minister George Gerapetritis will meet his Turkish counterpart Hakan Fidan in Athens on Nov. 8 to discuss bilateral issues including the demarcation of an exclusive economic zone, diplomatic sources said on Tuesday.

Greece and Turkey, NATO allies but historic foes, have been at odds for decades over matters ranging from airspace to maritime jurisdiction in the eastern Mediterranean, energy resources and ethnically split Cyprus.

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said last week he believed relations with Greece were improving and that the Gerapetritis-Fidan meeting was aimed at finding solutions to issues such as maritime zones and airspace.

The foreign ministers have been tasked with exploring whether conditions were favourable to initiate talks on the demarcation of the continental shelf and economic zone, Gerapetritis said last month.

An agreement on where their maritime zones begin and end is important for determining rights over possible gas reserves and power infrastructure schemes.

A high-level cooperation council, at which the countries will assess progress, is expected to take place in Ankara in January.

Separately, the leaders of estranged Greek and Turkish Cypriots were expected to meet informally with U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in New York on Tuesday.

Cyprus was split decades ago in a Turkish invasion after a brief Greek-inspired coup, and preceded by years of sporadic violence between Greek and Turkish Cypriots. Reunification talks collapsed in mid-2017 and have been at a stalemate since.