The Turkish research vessel Oruc Reis returned on Sunday from a controversial mission near Crete.
Tensions between Turkey and Greece have risen in recent weeks as the ship began investigating possible oil and gas reserves in the Mediterranean area claimed by both countries and Cyprus.
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis called the return of the Oruc Reis to waters off the coast of Antalya on Sunday as “a positive first step to ease tensions with Turkey.”
Athens had previously said it would not talk until Ankara would stop its “provocations”. In NATO talks, the two countries tried to avoid military clashes in the Mediterranean.
Turkey could have faced sanctions from the European Union, which stands behind EU members Greece and Cyprus, although there are also member states, including Germany, that want to break the deadlock between Greece and Turkey with talks.
