"Erdogan's aggression" against Greece: US intervenes
Created: 12/22/2022, 1:42 p.m
By: Erkan Pehlivan
Tensions between Greece and Turkey continue.
The US is also getting involved.
Ankara/Athens – Greece and Turkey accuse each other of provocation in the Aegean.
The Turkish government recently accused Athens of using fighter jets to disrupt a joint exercise with NATO,
writes
fr.de.
According to the Turkish Defense Ministry, Greek fighter jets have tried to prevent the maneuver twice since the weekend.
Now the Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar himself has commented on the incidents.
Turkey accuses Greece of "hostile acts".
"Greece's hostile actions violate the fundamental principles of NATO," Minister Akar said at a news conference he held with his Azerbaijani and Georgian counterparts Zakhir Hasanov and Juansher Burchuladze after a tripartite meeting in the central Anatolian city of Kayseri on December 21.
“We sincerely wish for peace and stability.
But Greece continues its provocative, expansionary and aggressive actions in the Aegean," Akar said.
The minister also appealed to NATO and especially the US to pursue an "objective, impartial and reasonable policy" on the conflict.
Akar urges Greek politicians to use common sense and not use the matter for domestic gain.
“We sincerely wish for peace and stability.
But Greece continues its provocative, expansionist and aggressive actions in the Aegean," Akar said.
F-16 of the Greek Air Force © Pantelis Saitas/dpa
"Threat from Erdogan most hostile statement since 1996"
Criticism also comes from the neighboring country.
The Greek newspaper Ta Nea calls the developments of the past few days a military provocation by Turkey that has reached unprecedented proportions.
"Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's threat of a missile strike against Greece is the most hostile statement from Ankara since Greece and Turkey teetered on the brink of war in the 1996 Imia crisis."
Both sides had then claimed the small island for themselves and sent warships.
US refuses to deliver modern F-156 aircraft to Turkey
The United States has long intervened in the conflict and is demanding an end to the aggression from Ankara.
Otherwise the USA will not deliver the required American combat aircraft to Turkey.
"Therefore, as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, I will not authorize F-16s for Turkey until he completes his campaign of aggression across the region," said Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Democrat Bob Menendez.
"I would like to conclude by saying to my colleagues here in the Senate: do not be afraid to stand up for American values in the face of Erdogan's aggression."
In addition to modern F-16 fighter jets, Turkey also wants to buy modernization packages from the USA for existing fighter jets, which Washington has so far held back.
(Erkan Pehlivan)
