Turkey's Foreign Ministry has accused Greece of violating the 1923 Treaty of Lausanne after Athens ordered the suspension of eight minority schools in the Thrace region, reviving Ankara's long-standing reference to a "Turkish minority" in Western Thrace, a term Greece does not officially recognize.
The closures stem from a recent Greek Education Ministry decision to shut a total of 47 elementary schools, kindergartens and minority schools across Eastern Macedonia and Thrace for the 2026-2027 school year, a move Greek authorities attributed to enrollment data and the geographic distribution of students across regional education districts.
Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesman Oncu Keceli condemned the decision, saying it reduces the number of minority elementary schools in Western Thrace to 76.
"We condemn Greece's decision to close eight more elementary schools belonging to the Turkish Minority of Western Thrace, citing insufficient student numbers," the ministry said in a statement.
The statement also criticized new enrollment restrictions at the 1st Turkish Minority Elementary School in Xanthi, calling them part of "systematic practices aimed at the gradual erosion of educational rights" for the minority community, and argued the measures violate the Lausanne Treaty.
Turkey called on Greece to comply with rulings from international courts and recommendations from European institutions regarding minority rights, saying Athens "continues to avoid" implementing such decisions.
The ministry pledged continued support for what it called the Turkish minority's struggle to defend its rights in the region.
Greek authorities have not yet issued a public response to Turkey's statement.
Greece officially refers to the Muslim community in Western Thrace as a religious rather than ethnic minority, a distinction rooted in the Lausanne Treaty that has long been a point of friction between the two countries.