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Turkey, led by President Reccep Tayyip Erdogan, has alienated many neighboring countries. In Syria, the Turkish president attacked NATO colleagues and attacked the United States’ Kurdish allies in the war against the Islamic State. At home, despite protests from the outside world, the president intends to turn World Heritage sites like Hagia Sophia and the Choramuseum into mosques. And before the slightest criticism from the EU countries, Erdogan threatens to unleash a new wave of migration to Europe.
Now Ankara’s eyes are on the Mediterranean Sea and the Greek islands off the Turkish coast. Under the slogan “blue homeland”, the Erdogan regime wants to strengthen Turkey’s presence at sea. This has led to an escalation of the latent conflict with Greece, which in the 1990s brought the countries to the brink of war. Last week, alarmingly, military vessels from the two NATO countries collided in connection with a Turkish exploration mission near the Greek island of Kastellorizo.
Greece, Cyprus and Turkey claim parts of the eastern Mediterranean, areas that Turkey wants to explore, for example natural gas resources.
Greece’s position is that the country’s economic zone is based on the Greek islands in the Aegean Sea and the eastern Mediterranean, which is also supported by international law. This means that an island like Kastellorizo, which is located two kilometers from the Turkish mainland, provides Greece with extensive territorial waters in the area. Turkey’s controversial position is that, instead, borders should be based on the country’s long coastline towards the Mediterranean.
Last year, Turkey signed an agreement with Libya’s central government, which Erdogan supports militarily through Syrian militias, in an exclusive economic zone in the Mediterranean. However, the maritime borders established in the agreement ignore the territorial waters of Greece. This prompted the EU country to respond with a similar agreement with Egypt. Since then, military exercises have taken turns.
The rest of the EU has expressed support for Greece, although individual countries want to reach a solution in different ways. The escalation of the conflict has led France to increase its presence in the area and the country is participating in military exercises at sea. French support must be seen in light of the fact that President Macron and Erdogan are on two completely different sides in Libya’s civil war, although the French president claims that it is primarily about defending a member state and the external borders of the EU.
The recent riots are a reminder of Erdogan’s limitless ambitions for power. In Erdogan’s view, Turkey is a regional power that will get away with it, regardless of price. That is why Ankara, from Syria to Greece, has prepared to confront NATO allies as well. The economic crisis at home has also made Erdogan dangerous and unpredictable, what conflict will he look for next?
Such a powerful leader only contributes to increasing tensions and conflicts in the world. Sweden should wholeheartedly support Greece and be prepared to impose heavy sanctions on Turkey.
