On July 6, 1997, the Greek delegation arrived in Madrid for the NATO Summit, led by then Prime Minister Kostas Simitis. Government spokesperson Dimitris Reppas assured that there was no scheduled meeting with then President of Turkey, Suleyman Demirel. However, the meeting had been arranged days earlier, with the intervention of the Americans, and had been kept secret. On July 8, in the presence of the two leaders, the Madrid Declaration was signed, a text that had been "pre-cooked" by the Americans and had been worked on for this purpose since the incident in Imia. Through the secret telegrams of the Americans, the entire planning unfolds, as well as the meetings, conversations, and negotiations that led to Madrid and what followed in the persistent effort of the Americans to save this Agreement. An Agreement that has since sealed Greek-Turkish relations with the recognition of Turkey's "legitimate and vital interests" in the Aegean and with the commitment to "avoid unilateral actions," which was upheld to avoid exercising sovereign rights. An Agreement that paved the way for the cancellation of the transfer of the S-300 to Cyprus.

The incident in Imia was not enough for the "graying" of the Aegean. The Madrid Agreement was also needed...