The Greek Minister of Defense warned that; “We see that Turkey wants to behave in Cyprus and the Aegean like it does in Iraq and Syria. However, Cyprus and Greece are not Middle Eastern countries.”
The Greek Minister of Defense stated that Turkey caused tensions with Greece in line with its invasion of Afrin.
Speaking to French newspaper Liberation, Minister Panos Kammenos said Turkey was putting strain on Greece, remarking that Turkey’s violation of Greece territorial waters increased by 45 percent and airspace by 48 percent during the last one year.
Kammenos said; “We are very close to a deadly accident. In the event of a violation of airspace, we mobilize our aircraft to escort Turkish planes until they go out of our airspace.” Kammenos called attention to the probability of an imminent accident for this reason, saying; “We have to defend our lands for not only Greece but for Europe as well.”
According to the Greek Minister, this tension is related with the current situation in Syria and the conflict with the Kurds. “Turkey is facing several problems in Afrin and seeks to move the tensions to Greece.”
Two weeks ago, a Turkish patrol boat collided with a Greek battleship. According to the Greek Minister, Turkey tries to put pressure on Europe by violating Greek water and airspace, thus the borders of Europe.
“For this reason, we notify our European allies and NATO after every incident”, he added.
The Greek Minister of Defense underlined that Turkey is using the tensions with Greece for its domestic political purposes.
Remarking that Turkey is causing another tension by blocking the gas extraction works offshore Cyprus, the Minister warned that; “We see that Turkey wants to behave in Cyprus and the Aegean like it does in Iraq and Syria. However, Cyprus and Greece are not Middle Eastern countries.”
