The regional governor of Central Macedonia, Apostolos Tzitzikostas, described as jokes what was reported about the coincidence of his name with another name of a person who is not allowed to enter Turkey. In his statements to journalists, on the occasion of the incident with the ban on his entry into Turkey, Mr. Tzitzikostas pointed out: «I cannot know what the Turks are thinking. But I can tell you that this act was an act of extreme provocation towards not only a Greek official but also a European official because I was there in my European capacity. At the same time he said: »the Turkish authorities checked my identity, my passport and all my European diplomatic documents. They have absolutely no excuse, because between the time of the thorough check and the time when it was announced that the ban on my entry into Turkey would be lifted, 6 to 7 hours passed.
During these hours, he said, he was in a customs office at the port of Smyrna and on board the ship. On the attitude of the Turkish authorities throughout this incident, he noted that it was not provocative, but stressed that «it was clear as a Greek European citizen and official was banned from entering the country». In any case, he stressed that as soon as the Turkish authorities informed him that there was a ban on his entry into Turkey, he decided to return to Greece.
Describing in detail the incident, Mr Tzitzikostas noted: «yesterday morning, around 10 o'clock, I arrived with the new ferry connection between Thessaloniki and Smyrna, by boat, at the port of Smyrna. When I checked my passport, the Turkish authorities announced that I was banned from entering Turkey, without any explanation whatsoever. I immediately contacted the Greek Prime Minister, the Foreign Minister and the consular and diplomatic authorities of both Greece and the European Union, because I was in the region as chairman of the Euro-Mediterranean Assembly of the European Committee of the Regions. After several hours in a customs office in the port of Izmir and after pressure from all sides, the Turkish Government and the authorities there told me that the ban on my entry into Turkey had been lifted. However, I had already decided that after this provocative attitude of Turkey I would leave and return to Greece.».
He stressed: «when we are on a mission abroad we do not represent ourselves, we represent all Greeks. And I assure you that there is no way I will ever accept any insult against any Greek, because for me the dignity of Greeks is non-negotiable.» He also thanked the Greek government, Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias, with whom he returned from Izmir, the diplomatic and consular authorities of Greece and the European Union in Turkey, and the political parties that issued statements in this regard, for their support.
On Turkey's stance, he said: «these provocative actions by Turkey deepen the gap between Turkey and the European Union. We as regions, as municipalities are here to act as bridges between peoples, to build partnerships for the benefit of citizens. And this is what we will continue to do.».
In response to questions from journalists, he noted that the mayor of Istanbul and the mayor of Izmir had contacted him, which, he said, «really shows that there is another face in Turkey». He even pointed out that the people of the mayor of Izmir, who were there from the very first moment to welcome him, as he responded to their invitation, supported him throughout this difficult 6-7 hour journey between an office in the Izmir customs office and the ship.
On Turkey's stance he said: «and Turkey, which is trying and we are all trying to keep close to the Western way of life, must understand that in this way it is constantly moving away from what it had set as its goal.» He added that «the matter is now in the hands of the collective bodies of the EU». «The Greek Foreign Ministry has already sent a question on the reasons why there was this ban on my person to enter Turkey and we are waiting in the next few days for the Turkish government to see if it intends to give some elementary serious answer about this incident,» he added.
On his decision to return to Greece, he said that from the first moment he was informed by the Turkish authorities that there was a ban on his entry into Turkey, he decided to leave and was looking for ways to leave.
