TRIPOLIS, Greece – The United States is fully engaged on the question of the two Greek soldiers held in Turkey and strongly supports the approach taken by the Greek prime minister, US Ambassador Geoffrey Pyatt said in statements to “Arcadia Portal” webTV (www.arcadiaportal.gr) on Wednesday. The ambassador talked to the portal in the city of Tripolis, where he had paid a visit to the University of the Peloponnese.

Asked if he thought the situation with Greece’s neighbour Turkey was likely to escalate, Pyatt noted that he “didn’t have a crystal ball”.

“What I will say on the question of Turkey is that we strongly support the approach that the prime minister has taken – seeking to engage, to find a basis for dialogue and, certainly on the question of the two soldiers, we understand how important this is for Greece and, as United States government, we’ve been fully engaged and hope that these two soldiers will be able to return home very soon,” he said.

Regarding his visit to the university, he said he had been impressed by the students’ questions: “We had a broad discussion about America’s commitment to our alliance with Greece, America’s interest in Greece’s economic recovery, but also the challenges that both of our democracies face as we deal with the global and national environment, which makes the alliance with Greece and Greece’s role as a pillar of regional stability more important than ever before.”