By Androula Gourov
Turkey's anti-Hellenic rhetoric and anti-Hellenic actions have long been at their peak. After the devastating, deadly earthquakes in Turkey and the humanitarian stance maintained by Greece, Ankara observed a rudimentary "truce".
However, the systematic violation of the air and sea space of Greece and Cyprus has been systematic for years and is no longer news. We are used to the challenges of the "Oruch Race" and the instrumentalization of large numbers of immigrants in Greece and Cyprus. In the middle of all this was the memorandum of cooperation with Libya in the field of energy resources... The Sultan's open threats a while ago, warning that "we will come suddenly one night" as well as his references to the massacres in Asia Minor in 1922, had raise concerns about Ankara's goals.
It is known that all of the above is based on the position of neo-Ottomanism promoted by the former Prime Minister of Turkey Ahmet Davutoglu in the book "Strategic Depth". Of course, Davutoglu based his "grand strategy" on the reports of Nihat Erim in 1956, the then advisor to Turkish Prime Minister Menderes.
As for the "strategic depth", let's not forget that, according to Davutoglu, the inner and narrowest circle of Turkish geopolitical interests, along with Albania and Kosovo, includes a country that was recently accepted into NATO at the price of significant compromises from Greece and Bulgaria. It is the Republic of North Macedonia.
Why do we mention the Republic of North Macedonia? As a member of NATO and a potential candidate for EU membership, the Republic of North Macedonia is obliged to strictly comply with European and Euro-Atlantic values, including the absence of disputes and claims of any type with neighboring countries. This includes the use of "hate speech". Due to non-compliance with these fundamental requirements, Greece vetoed Skopje's accession to the Pact in 2008. At the cost of many diplomatic efforts with the Prespa Agreement, the bilateral differences were settled and Greece gave the green light to Skopje. Alongside Prespes, Skopje also negotiated with Bulgaria, another NATO and EU member, with whom the Republic of North Macedonia had problems. When in the summer of 2017, at the price of many compromises, the two countries signed a Treaty of Friendship and Good Neighbourhood, it seemed that the problems were going to be resolved. As a result of compromises made by Greece and Bulgaria, in March 2020 the Republic of North Macedonia became a full member of NATO.
Apparently in Skopje they felt that since their work was done too quickly, they remembered and went back to their old ways. Not only did they bring up the "rhetoric of hate" again, but they also resorted to "acts of hate". Not long ago, in the heart of Skopje, the Cultural and Information Center of Bulgaria in the Republic of North Macedonia was attacked and looted. Only in the last six months was the Bulgarian cultural club in Bitola set on fire. Gunmen shot at the office of the Bulgarian association in Ohrid and two months later its secretary was brutally beaten. The fact that the arsonist received a suspended sentence and the beaten young man was denied medical treatment is indicative of the role of the Skopje authorities. In addition, in early February, access to the territory of the Republic of North Macedonia was denied to hundreds of Bulgarians who wanted to pay their respects at the tomb of Bulgarian national hero Georgi Delchev located in Skopje. Delchev, a fighter against the Turks and the Ottoman yoke, is equally honored both in Bulgaria and in the Republic of North Macedonia. G. Deltsev is for Sofia and Skopje as Karaiskakis is for Greece...
Let's go back to Turkey again. Ankara was granted EU candidate status in December 1999 and substantive negotiations began in 2005. In fact, there has been no progress since then and Turkey is gradually moving towards an increasingly independent policy and has repeatedly stated its desire to become a player of geopolitical importance. An integral part of this ambition is the guarantee of Turkish influence in the defined "inner circle" of Turkish geopolitical interests, namely the Republic of North Macedonia, Albania and Kosovo. Pristina's regime does not even allow us to think about joining the EU. On the way to possible European integration, Tirana "goes" together with Skopje, causing heaps of challenges against Sofia.
More recently, Bulgarian President Rumen Radev said in Brussels that, given the failure to honor commitments to Sofia and the escalating anti-Bulgarian campaign, the return of the Bulgarian veto to the Republic of North Macedonia's pre-accession negotiations is more than likely.
Checkmate! The "inner circle" is free and the building of the new Ottoman Empire can begin. "Attila" advances.