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Due to the dispute in the eastern Mediterranean after Turkey explored for oil and was criticized by France, Greece and the European Union, the Turkish president is warning his French counterpart not to mess with the Turkish people and Turkey, otherwise you will face other problems with it.
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Erdogan accuses his French counterpart of “lacking historical knowledge”
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan warned his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron on Saturday against “meddling” with Ankara, in light of the escalating tension between the two NATO member countries.
In a televised speech in Istanbul, on the 40th anniversary of the military coup in 1980, Erdogan said: “Don’t mess with the Turkish people, don’t mess with Turkey.”
Erdogan accused his French counterpart of “lacking historical knowledge” and threatened him saying: “Mr. Macron, you will have other problems with me.”
He accused France of interfering in Libya “for the sake of oil” and in Africa “for the sake of diamonds, gold and copper.”
Erdogan urged Greece to “stay away from improper behavior”, backed by countries like France, in the disputed waters, after they carried out naval maneuvers from Athens and Ankara in the region last month.
This was Erdogan’s first comment directed directly at his French counterpart.
For his part, Macron harshly criticized Ankara in its confrontation with Greece and Cyprus in the eastern Mediterranean in the context of exploring energy resources.
Macron said last Thursday that Europeans should “be clear and firm not with the Turkish people, but with the government of President Erdogan, which has taken unacceptable measures.”
Macron added that France “cannot teach Turkey a lesson in humanity,” and asked Macron to analyze France’s record, especially in Algeria, and its role in the massacres in Rwanda in 1994.
The French president’s statements came during a summit of the “MED 7” group in the European Union, which hinted at the imposition of sanctions on Turkey for its movements.
The Elysee Palace stated that the objective of the summit is “to advance on the path of consensus on the relationship of the European Union with Turkey.”
The European Union warned Turkey, for its part, against the imposition of new sanctions on Turkey for its Mediterranean policy, and after the meeting of these countries with France, they confirmed their full support for Cyprus and Greece in the face of repeated violations of their sovereignty by part of Turkey.
And French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian revealed that the European Council will consider imposing sanctions on Ankara by the end of this month.
Turkey announced that it would conduct a naval exercise with live ammunition off the coast of Cyprus between Saturday and Monday, despite threats from the European Union to impose sanctions on it. Turkey said in a message to the international maritime telex system, “Naftex”, that shooting exercises would be held off the coast of Sadr Azam Koi in northern Cyprus.
On the other hand, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said: “The European Union has no jurisdiction over the issue of maritime borders.”
This comes after Turkey sent an oil and gas exploration ship, “Aruj Reis”, and warships to the disputed waters on August 10, and this mission was extended three times.
Relations between Turkey and France have deteriorated in the eastern Mediterranean, but the two NATO countries differ on other files, including the conflict in Syria and Libya.
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis is reported to have demanded in an opinion piece published Thursday that “the European Union should impose significant sanctions on Turkey if it does not withdraw its ships from disputed areas in the eastern Mediterranean.”
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