Greece's Woes A Chance To Bury Turk-Greek Rivalry? -- Reuters
(Reuters) - Greece's debt crisis may lead to improved ties with its old rival Turkey as the prime ministers of the two countries meet to discuss issues from cuts in defense spending, to financial crisis management.
Turkey's Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan visits Athens on Friday for talks with his Greek counterpart George Papandreou in what Turkish and Greek officials hope will bring a new era in relations between the often feuding Aegean neighbors.
With debt-choked Greece undergoing austerity measures, both Ankara and Athens have said they want to achieve the goal of demilitarizing the Aegean as a way of cutting defense spending.
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Update: Turkish PM visits troubled Greece, backs arms cuts -- AP
My Comment: The historical and cultural background for this age-old conflict will not change over night, but the financial crisis is giving both governments an opportunity to settle an internal problem. For Greece, they need money and cutting the defense budget is preferable than cutting someone's pensions. For Turkey, rumors of an impending coup d'etat from the military has been circulating since last year .... cutting their influence and their budgets will be one way to put them in line.
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