Tensions between Turkey and Greece remain at a high, with the Turkish regime allegedly repeatedly violating Greek airspace this week with CN-235 spy planes.
Greece accused Turkey of 45 violations of Greek airspace on Tuesday, 35 of which were said to have been conducted by C-235 spy planes flying into the north-east, central, and southern Aegean sea. Turkish fighter jets also encroached on Greek airspace.
According to a report from Greek newspaper Proto Thema, in at least three cases, Greek fighter jets managed to intercept the Turkish aircraft.
Greece and Turkey continue to have rocky relations as the Turkish research vessel Oruc Reis remains in the Mediterranean, escorted by an estimated 10 Turkish naval warships.
The vessel looks to conduct seismic research in an area of the Mediterranean sea, which Greece claims is part of the Greek exclusive economic zone (EEZ).
Greek Admiral: We Have Enough Missiles to Sink Turkey’s Navy Twice Over https://t.co/fCBAY8zuSV
— Breitbart London (@BreitbartLondon) July 28, 2020
On Wednesday, Turkish Defence Minister Hulusi Akar claimed that the government of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan wished to resolve the dispute in the Mediterranean through dialogue.
“Despite all this, we want to believe that common sense will prevail. Both on the field and at the table, we side with international law, good neighbourliness, and dialogue,” Akar said.
“We want to reach political solutions through peaceful means in line with international laws,” he added.
At the same time, the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs has accused Greece of violating the rights of the Turkish minority in the Thrace region over the closure of schools, which the Greeks claim is due to a shortage of students.
“This practice of Greece is part of the policy of assimilation and oppression that has been applied for decades against the Turkish minority of western Thrace,” the ministry said. It then claimed the Greeks violated the Lausanne Treaty, which ended a war between the two countries in 1923.
Greece Puts Armed Forces on Alert as Turkish Offshore Resource Exploration Raises Tensions https://t.co/mnVphhlTuV
— Breitbart London (@BreitbartLondon) July 22, 2020
The Greek government responded firmly to the allegations, saying: “It is at least paradoxical, if not funny, for Turkey to tell to Greece of the need to respect minority rights. History will forever remain the most objective witness to Turkey’s systematic elimination of all minorities on its territory during the twentieth century.”
“By the way, in Constantinople [Istanbul] in 1955, there were 54 Greek primary schools, whereas today only three. Does the Turkish leadership know why?” they added.
Reports: Turkish Police Use Drones to Organise Tear Gas Attacks on Greek Border Guards https://t.co/jKZu5BzxPq
— Breitbart London (@BreitbartLondon) March 8, 2020
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