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The European Union has remained faithful to its timid attitude towards Turkish crime, which has caused the neighbor to feel no real pressure, despite the serious escalation of tension, as reflected in the conclusions of the Brussels Summit.
The 27 leaders of the member states considered the possibility of an arms embargo on Ankara, as well as the German ultimatum, which gave Tayyip Erdogan a week to remove Oruç Reis from the Greek continental shelf, but the final text. Conclusions Both points in question were omitted.
Instead, the Council simply confirmed the conclusions of the previous October summit, which gave credence until the next December summit, and disapproved of Ankara’s recent investigative activities.
In particular, as stated in them, the Council, after disapproving of Turkey’s new provocative and unilateral actions in the Eastern Mediterranean, calls on Turkey:
- Please respect UN Security Council Resolutions 550 and 789 and highlight the importance of the Varos regime, while reiterating your full solidarity with Greece and Cyprus.
- Reverse these actions and work to reduce tensions consistently and systematically. It will continue to monitor the issue closely to follow up on its October 2 findings.
Mitsotakis: the decision on sanctions in December
According to Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, after the Summit, Turkey and its provocation in the Eastern Mediterranean were at the center of the agenda. However, final decisions on sanctions are expected in December. In fact, he stressed that he raised the issue of an arms embargo on Turkey.
The Prime Minister reiterated that the issue of Turkey was not on the agenda, but insisted with the President of Cyprus, Nikos Anastasiadis, and also called for the conclusions of the Summit to be strongly condemned by the EU for Turkey’s actions.
He acknowledged that the other leaders had agreed to the terms, but called on Turkey to reverse the move.
He also said that in these formalities there is an explicit reference to Turkey respecting Security Council resolutions and asked Turkey to reverse these actions, while affirming that it will monitor developments. “When we discussed Turkey extensively at the previous Summit, we had to go a long way to explain to Europeans,” continued K. Mitsotakis.
“After each meeting we still have a long way to go. “The conclusions that were reaffirmed today in paragraph 21, clearly state, establish a clear time frame to assess Turkey’s behavior in December,” he said.
It should be noted that the Prime Minister also referred to the issue of territorial waters expansion, when asked to answer a relevant question. “The debate on the expansion of territorial waters, as I heard from the opposition, cannot take place in the media. It is an inalienable right of the country, you know why it has not been done yet. It retains the inalienable right to extend up to 12 miles, “he said.
With three Navtex in the Aegean and the Mediterranean, Ankara responds
Ignorantly ignoring the previous warnings and without “breaking a sweat”, Ankara – with a new incendiary movement that could be interpreted as a response to the text of the Summit conclusions – proceeded to issue three new instructions to seafarers, with which undertakes to carry out military exercises in specific maritime areas of the Aegean Sea and the eastern Mediterranean.
In particular, Turkey’s Hydrographic Service has issued three Navtexes for three different military exercises: the first is scheduled for October 22-23 in the Mediterranean, the second on October 19-21 in the Aegean and the third on October 19-21. October 20. also in the Aegean.
It is noted that one of the three Turkish Navtex blocks in a specific area west of Samothrace and south of Evros, where Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis will pay a visit on Saturday.
Turkey, Sea Island (October 19-21), Mediterranean (October 22-23) and Black (October 20-21) declared 4 NAVTEX for target training. pic.twitter.com/s8b6yI5A38
– Eastern Mediterranean Policy (@denizpolitik) October 16, 2020
At the same time, the Greek Navy has been on high alert since Monday (10/12) when the Turkish research vessel Oruc Reis set sail from the port of Antalya, to reach the interior of the first illegal Turkish Navtex, south of Kastelorizo.
It is recalled that Turkey’s first Navtex regarding the Oruc Reis seismic surveys is valid until October 22.
Chancellor’s inflammatory comment
As if that weren’t enough, true to the inflammatory rhetoric, followed by a statement by Turkey’s foreign minister, who opposes the European Union, while describing Greece and Cyprus as “spoiled.”
Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesman Hami Aksoy commented on the text of the conclusions of the European Summit, which included references to his country. According to the Turkish official, “it would be good if the EU took a neutral stance and offered advice to find a solution instead of threatening us.”
He went on to say that Turkey had shown intentions and goodwill to start a dialogue and was now waiting for concrete steps and concrete steps from Europe to achieve the desired results. 
In fact, it speaks of a “habitual biased position of the EU against Turkey”, although Ankara is not surprised that the Union describes it as “a challenge to our determination to defend the rights of Turkish Cypriots”.
He also shoots at Greece and Cyprus, saying the two countries have “irrational and arrogant demands that must end.” He stressed that the EU’s continued threats against sanctions were “increasingly discouraging” and did not encourage dialogue and reconciliation, and showed that its purpose and language were far from being honest and constructive.
Expand the intensity field
At the same time, new data is being created on the emerging scenario of Turkey’s “break” with the West by testing Ankara’s S-400 missile system, which on Friday carried out at least one missile launch from the field that had occupied in the Black Sea region. .
Although it has not been officially confirmed that the Turkish side has conducted the first comprehensive test of the system, reports from the Turkish and international media leave no room for doubt.
Ankara’s move has sparked a backlash from the United States, as expected, as the issue is a chronic point of contention between the two sides, and Washington has threatened sanctions many times in the past. At the same time, the equation includes NATO, which has also expressed its reactions to the purchase and possible activation of the system.
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