Turkey has announced that it is resuming exploratory surveys in disputed waters in the eastern Mediterranean, prompting immediate furious responses from Europe and the US media.
Turkey’s Foreign Ministry stated that the renewed efforts of Turkey’s seismic research vessel, the Oruc Reis, in the Eastern Mediterranean will be within the Turkish continental shelf, hundreds of kilometres away from the Greek mainland.
Responding to a Greek statement denouncing Turkey’s NAVTEX (navigational telex) in the region, the ministry said in a written statement that the vessel had undergone maintenance in Turkey’s southern Port of Antalya for a month and would continue its activities until October 22.
The Navtex advisory statement said the ship would be active in an area 425 kilometres off the Greek mainland and 15 kilometres from Turkey. LINK
The decision has infuriated the EU and the US.
Turkey had withdrawn the vessel from the disputed waters last month to “allow for diplomacy” before an EU summit at which Turkey was threatened with sanctions if it continued exploratory operations in the disputed area.
“Turkey has proved it lacks credibility. All those who believed Turkey meant all it said before the European summit of Oct. 1-2 now stand corrected,” Greek government spokesman Stelios Petsas said on Monday.
Greece’s Foreign Ministry described the new voyage as a “major escalation” and a “direct threat to peace in the region.”
EU diplomatic chief Josep Borrell said the bloc would discuss the matter later this week, adding that the new deployment “will lead to new tensions instead of contributing to de-escalation efforts we were calling for at the last European Council.”
“We consider that Turkey needs to engage actively in finding solutions and not to engage in negative behaviour.” LINK
Ahval reports that the German Foreign Minister cancelled a scheduled trip to Turkey within hours of the announcement that exploratory activities would resume in the disputed area.
Germany’s Foreign Minister cancelled a scheduled visit to Ankara, a few hours after Turkey announced it was sending again research vessel Oruc Reis for a new research mission in the eastern Mediterranean…
Asked by German media why Maas is not travelling to Turkey, the spokesperson simply reiterated that the minister’s plans includes only Greece and Cyprus. LINK
An opinion piece posted by the Washington Examiner called for the immediate imposition of sanctions:
Redeploying an energy survey vessel into Greece’s exclusive economic zone, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey has proved that he requires sanctioning.
It is obvious that Erdogan is challenging the European Union to live up to its sanction threats. Following the Oruc Reis’ previous survey in August, the Turkish leader agreed to keep the vessel in port so as to facilitate dialogue with the EU and Greece. But his motives weren’t altruistic. Recognizing that Turkey’s actions are incompatible with Greece’s sovereign rights, the EU had threatened sanctions if Erdogan’s surveys continued. Erdogan, for a time, seemed to be inclined toward compromise. But this new survey proves that Erdogan has chosen to double down on escalation.
The central concern here is Erdogan’s belief that he can shred European security with impunity… Determined to build a neo-Ottoman empire centered in Sunni Islamic populism, Erdogan sees the public subjugation of his competitors as fuel to his legacy agenda. Hated by Turkish nationalists, Greece presents unique appeal in this regard. Erdogan appears to have used the pretense of a diplomatic resolution to this crisis in order only to make Greece and the EU appear desperate for compromise and reciprocally weak.
Erdogan must not be allowed to succeed in this gambit. LINK
There is not much doubt that the EU, and possibly also the US, will be forced to act upon their long standing threats to impose sanctions against Turkey after the re-commencement of the survey vessel’s activities.
Turkey’s military adventurism in northern Syria, Libya or even the southern Caucasus could be tolerated, albeit drawing the necessary rebukes. Persistently and flagrantly disputing the ‘teritorial integrity’ and sovereignty of an EU and NATO member-State, however, is another matter entirely.
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Don’t all vessels go to home port for resupply then back to assignment?
Only if the vessel doesn’t have UNREP capabilities. The Oruc Reis certainly have the ability.
A research vessel might have equipment that is not transferrable like that
This is according to logic. But according to EU elites’ brains, Turkey was surrendering.
They are getting more brazen. Turkey is one inch away from reestablishing the neo Ottoman Empire.
We wont hear in person these words but they will be spoken sooner or later…
“- nuke those motherfucker bastards!”
Hopefully, Deveselu will play a significant role on this…
More gypsy dreams
PS…
“The NATO Aegis ballistic defense system installed in Romania has completed the technical update process (August 2019). The upgrade was implemented including naval-type Aegis anti-ballistic systems” (…) “During the technical upgrade process, the United States met its commitment to anti-ballistic defense against NATO by temporarily installing the High Altitude Defense Zone Terminal High Altitude Area Defense, THAAD) at Deveselu base”…
Sülalesi bozuk
Turkey brother STRONK! Gayreek scared…hahahaha
I give you 1€ you give me 10 Turkish lira. You are more … I am ten times stronger !!!
hahaha Great Khan use Tögrög while stupid European sheman use Euro to buy grog.
im sorry but it is muslims who are into the homosexuality and pedophilia not the greeks
hahahha how you know, great khan think you also gayreek.
you mongoloids are always saying the same stupid thing…”gayreek” while you are the ones doing buttsex to eathother…your women dream of Greeks thats why u take all the men
Ottoman leftover why don’t you find out from you Grandma
you are an ottoman leftover? nice to meet you!
Russia so wants to clip Turkey off NATO. So much so that Russia ignores Turkey’s interference in Russia’s interests in Libya, Syria, and the South Caucasus. Turkey’s Sunni centric Ottoman Empire ambitions are not incompatible with the US alliance with Sunni forces, whether state sponsored or independent. It is Shia Iran that concerns the US and its Sunni allies. The EU may chip it’s teeth over the Turks asserting rights along Turkey’s own coastline but the EU won’t do anything about it. Still, Putin will prod this sore spot for all its worth. If he could get Turkey and Greece at war, it would make all the above problem areas easier to solve. Erdogan doesn’t want a war with Greece, but he does want the street cred he gets by aggressively asserting Turkey’s claims to its near shore resources. Erdogan has military forces busy in Iraq, Syria, Libya, and Azerbaijan. He is successfully courting Sudan, Bahrain, and Qatar. He is busy throughout the Horn of Africa. But the Turkmen tribal influence is greatest to his East, all the way to Kyrgyzstan. He will soon be a thorn in China’s side by flexing the Uyghur situation. The real flash point is the south Caucus because it will inevitably bring into direct conflict Russia, Turkey and Iran. Russia and Iran like the status quo. Erdogan doesn’t. That’s why he scuttled the truce in N-K. By rattling swords to his west he distracts attention from his real agenda which lies to his south and East. I wonder what he got out of Putin in exchange for sending his exploration vessel back on it mission which to Putin’s delight rattles the Greeks and the Germans and French so.
Jihad in Kashmir soon, Turkey-Pakistan brother liberate Kashmir soon from Hindu street shit monkey.
We are waiting come.We will destroy pakistan this time.
Turkey doesn’t have a Sunni centric Ottoman Empire ambition. Otherwise It wouldn’t ally itself with Azerbaijan and have bad relations with the entirity of Gulf States (with the exception of Qatar).
Turkey is pushing its agenda through the usage of Muslim Brotherhood. That’s why Egypt is brutally against any Turkish presence in the Sahel region.
Egypt like a donkey with no dik hahhaa
“Keep your friends near, and your enemies nearer”, The Godfather.
Someone has to cut off those dirty stealing hands of Erdodog… https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/3871c99afe861f304f8783cddc46b25308afac85637f98ccb7e363d902420def.jpg
A few men still walk the earth. One of them is Erdogan.
Erdogan great Khan.
Erdogan MALAKAS Khan.
i have never seen a muslim man. men have integrity this is incompatible with islam
Erdogan is that Muslim man with integrity. In the current world if you don’t take b.s, you are the guy without integrity. If you allow to be walked all over like a bitch, you got integrity.
?
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turkey is begging to be annihilated, they think they are smart playing russia and the west against each other but the west and russia know them game is not worth the prize, turkey is worthless and will be destroyed sooner or later by either or both. nato has lost interest and russia knows turkey is unreliable and not worth the price just to score against nato. i cannot wait to watch turkey be dismembered
Go for it you can destroy Turkey… just watch your asssssss
i know, because turks are homosexuals and everybody needs to watch their asses from a turkish invasion
Turkey is showing the whole world how useless the bureaucratic entity called the European Union is, the impotence of Brussels makes it easy for the Yankees to keep Europeans in subjection through NATO, but also in the parts of Moscow and Beijing the spectacle of seeing Europeans, once menacing and now ridiculous, must be a blast.
Lmao..Turkey is like Anti-vaxxers,detrimental to society and risk ruining herd immunity(uber-super west values).xD
at that time i feel so sorry for the Turks and what is coming to them…so sorry indeed…
Greek idiot sorry for the Turks . don’t be re . show us what you can do start dancing sivtos… to much ouzo that’s what makes you talk rubbish
dude i see you love uzo…ill send you some as a gift…but now prepare for your country to end…sorry about that
Thats the wonder to be part of the Nato, that you can shit on other member and no one brave enough to do anything seriously especially when you the one of most powerfull army in Nato
from a geographical standpoint turkey has every right to consider the passage between cyprus and turkey’s mainland as part of turkey’s eez and have no reason to give in to the silly greeks.
Right now all we can clearly see that the monstrosity is a Wahhabi psychopathic Zionistic CIA creation. He was sleeper, and even send that ship as to help Gaza, and the he totally uncovered him self after destruction of ISIS and his abominable presence in Syria. Aggression on Syria.