The state, political and military leadership of Greece is sending a strict message to Ankara, on the occasion of the serious Turkish challenge in the Aegean, which took place on Sunday morning, on the eve of the 21st anniversary of the crisis in Imia.
A Turkish rocket, driven by the Turkish Chief of General Staff and the entire Turkish military leadership, attempted to approach Imia in a demonstratively provocative manner.
Only on the basis of mutual respect can healthy bilateral relations be built, he said, referring to those neighboring countries that seem to disregard the rules of good neighborliness and question international conditions, , on the occasion of his official visit to the country.
"We are actively promoting peace and cooperation," he said, "but at the same time we are firmly upholding our sovereign rights under international law."
They undermine, Mr. Tsipras points out, the structural efforts "the revival of nationalism, including by questioning the international conditions on which our diplomatic relations are based, which we have been making for a number of years to strengthen good neighborly relations and regional cooperation ".
The Treaty of Lausanne must be fully respected by all, said the President of the Hellenic Republic, Prokopis Pavlopoulos, from Lisbon, sending a message to Turkey, while reiterating that its challenge leads to a question of the borders not only of Greece, but and the EU
The readiness of the Greek Armed Forces to face any challenge is a given, said the Chief of the General Staff of National Defense, Admiral Evangelos Apostolakis.
Fleet, Army and Air Force are ready at any time, he said, to face such demonstrations and actions, which do not help at all the climate for cooperation and calm in the region.
The Greek Foreign Minister spoke about a "communication show from Turkey".
We saw on Sunday in Imia the irresponsible attitude of an irresponsible country. On the contrary, we are a responsible country, which sends the message that it is not claiming anything, but is not willing to concede anything, said the Deputy Foreign Minister, George Katrougalos.
In the meantime, a wave of mass violations of Greek airspace by Turkish fighters occurred yesterday.
Two armed Turkish F-16s and a CN-235 electronic warfare aircraft committed three violations of air traffic rules and 19 violations of Greek airspace.
In one case, two armed Turkish F-16s engaged in a virtual air battle with a pair of Greek fighter jets on alert in the area between Chios and Samos.
Athens is calmly watching Turkey's movements and is concerned about the risk of further escalation of tension.
From the first moment, the Armed Forces in the Aegean were instructed to be on high alert for any new Turkish challenges.
At the same time, the government has taken steps in the embassies of important countries for the Turkish challenge.
The new Turkish provocation is interpreted as a show of strength, an open warning and a reaction against the decision of the Greek justice not to extradite to Turkey the 8 Turkish Air Force officers who sought asylum in Greece, after the failed summer coup.
The Turkish provocation in the Aegean is expected to be put by the Prime Minister of Greece, Alexis Tsipras, in the telephone communication he will have with the German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, in view of the visit that Mrs. Merkel will pay in Ankara on February 3.
The telephone call will be made at the request of the German Chancellor.
The discussion is expected to focus on Euro-Turkish relations, the Cyprus issue and the refugee crisis.
Source: sigmalive.com