Greek islands launch special visa program for Turkish visitors in diplomatic effort to calm region

By DEREK GATOPOULOS
Associated Press

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Officials on the Greek island of Rhodes have opened a vacation visa terminal for Turkish visitors as part of a diplomatic effort to ease long-standing tensions between the two countries. The limited-access visa will allow Turks to visit 10 Greek islands for up to a week without having to apply for full access to the European Union’s passport-free travel zone, known as the Schengen area. NATO members Greece and Turkey launched several initiatives last year to try and sidestep decades-old disputes — mostly over sea boundaries and mineral rights in the Aegean Sea — to focus on trade.