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Greek PM says tests positive for Covid-19

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis was pictured without a mask during a meeting in Istanbul on Sunday with 82-year-old Patriarch Bartholomew, the spiritual head of Orthodox Christianity . ©AFP

Athens (AFP) - Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Monday said he had tested positive for Covid-19 after returning from a trip to Turkey.

"The daily rapid test at the office gave a positive result to Covid-19," Mitsotakis said in an Instagram post.

"I will isolate at home and work from there...I am certain all will be well and that I'll be back at the office very soon," the 54-year-old said.

Mitsotakis, who is double vaccinated and has had a booster against Covid, on Sunday visited Turkey and was invited to lunch by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan at his mansion on the banks of the Bosphorus.

The two leaders were pictured standing maskless side by side to admire the Bosphorus view.

Despite long-standing tensions between Athens and Ankara, the two leaders sought common ground in the face of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

On Monday evening Mitsotakis tweeted his thanks to President Erdogan "for your call and your kind wishes for a speedy recovery!"

While in Turkey Mitsotakis also attended a religious service at the Ecumenical Patriarchate in Istanbul, and later met 82-year-old Patriarch Bartholomew, the spiritual head of Orthodox Christianity.

Both were also pictured without masks.

Bartholomew had contracted the virus in December.

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