Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan pledged Thursday to open a "new era" in relations with historic rival Greece, as he opened his first official visit to Athens since 2017.

"I believe that the Turkey-Greece strategic cooperation meeting will lead to a new era" in relations, Erdogan told Greek President Katerina Sakellaropoulou, adding that "we need to be optimistic, and this optimism will be fruitful in the future."