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Stock photo of two Turkish warships
Greece has denied its consent to hold talks with Turkey, mediated by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), with a view to easing tensions between the two parties due to disputes over maritime borders and gas exploration in the Mediterranean. Oriental.
The Greek Foreign Ministry said that “the published information stating that Greece and Turkey have agreed to hold calls (technical talks) to defuse tensions in the eastern Mediterranean does not correspond to reality.”
The ministry emphasized that “de-escalation will only occur with the immediate withdrawal of all Turkish ships from the Greek continental shelf.”
This came after Jens Stoltenberg, NATO Secretary General, stated that “following talks with the leaders of Turkey and Greece, the two allies agreed to initiate technical talks in NATO in order to establish mechanisms to avoid military conflicts and reduce accident risks in the eastern Mediterranean “.
He added: “I will stay in close contact with all relevant allies to find a solution to the tension, in the spirit of NATO solidarity.”
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Turkey’s offshore drilling has increased tensions
Stoltenberg described Turkey and Greece as “important allies” and noted that “NATO” is the most important advisory platform for problems affecting common security.
- Is there a possibility of a war in the eastern Mediterranean over gas and oil?
In military jargon, “conflict avoidance” refers to establishing communication channels between the two armies in the same region, just as the United States did with Russia in Syria, but Stoltenberg did not reveal details.
A Greek diplomat said: “We learned of the desire of the NATO secretary general to work on the development of de-escalation mechanisms, but the immediate withdrawal of all Turkish ships from the Greek continental shelf would represent a de-escalation.”
‘Ongoing conflict’
The Turkish Foreign Ministry announced that Ankara was ready for dialogue on the crisis in the eastern Mediterranean without preconditions, confirming the support of the Turkish side for the initiative of the Secretary General of NATO to ease tension in the eastern Mediterranean, He added that he hopes that Greece will respond to this invitation.
On Thursday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan welcomed the efforts of German Chancellor Angela Merkel to resolve the problems caused by Greece and its supporters in the eastern Mediterranean.
Turkey and Greece are locked in a dispute over demands to control potential natural gas reserves in the region, based on each country’s views on the extent of its continental shelf.
Turkey had deployed the research vessel “Oroç President” and warships in the disputed waters on August 10, and the mission was extended twice.
Greece responded to the Turkish move by conducting naval exercises with many allies in the European Union and the United Arab Emirates in an area not far from the smaller exercises Turkey conducted between Cyprus and Crete last week.
The European Union is watching the escalation of disputes with growing concern and has repeatedly urged Turkey to halt drilling activities and has threatened to impose sanctions on Ankara if it refuses to resolve the dispute through dialogue.
Greece, with the support of the European Union, accuses Turkey of carrying out hostilities and invading its maritime borders.
