CHANGES HEADLINE, DECK, LEDE, EDITS THROUGHOUT
By Sarp Ozer
ANKARA (AA) - Turkish and Greek military delegations met on Tuesday at NATO headquarters in Brussels to discuss ways to reduce the risk of an incident amid rising tensions in the Eastern Mediterranean, according to the Turkish Defense Ministry.
The technical talks were planned after a meeting between Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg.
An initial meeting was held on Sept. 10.
A follow-up meeting is planned for Friday, the ministry said in a statement after the meeting ended.
Greece has disputed Turkey's current energy exploration activities in the Eastern Mediterranean, trying to box in Turkish maritime territory based on small islands near the Turkish coast.
Turkey, the country with the longest coastline in the Mediterranean, has sent out drill ships to explore for energy on its continental shelf, asserting the rights of Ankara and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus in the region.
Dialogue about fairly sharing resources will be a win-win for all sides, say Turkish officials.