Alex Christoforou
The statements, views and opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of this site. This site does not give financial, investment or medical advice.
Greece’s prime minister warmly thanked France Thursday for boosting its military presence in the eastern Mediterranean, where Greek and Turkish warships are closely shadowing each other over a Turkish energy exploration bid in waters Athens claims as its own.
Meanwhile, Turkey accused Greece and the island nation of Cyprus of encroaching on its rights in the Mediterranean and vowed to defend its interests in the region but also called for dialogue to resolve the dispute.
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis tweeted that French President Emmanuel Macron was “a true friend of Greece and also a fervent protector of European values and international law.”
The mounting territorial tension follows Turkey’s move to send a seismic research vessel, escorted by warships, into waters between the Greek island of Crete and Cyprus to prospect for potential offshore gas and oil reserves, following similar discoveries in other parts of the region.
Greece claims part of the area is over its own continental shelf and has demanded that the Turkish ships withdraw. Turkey counters that it’s entitled to conduct research in the area. Greece placed its military on alert, and sent warships to the area off Turkey’s southern coast.
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Greece, Egypt & France align against Turkish moves in East Med. by The Duran
The Duran Quick Take: Episode 628. Greece, Egypt & France align against Turkish moves in East Med. Via Ekathimerini (https://www.ekathimerini.com/255825/gallery/ekathimerini/news/greece-welcomes-french-boost-as-tension-rises-in-east-med)… Greece’s prime minister warmly thanked France Thursday for boosting its military presence in the eastern Mediterranean, where Greek and Turkish warships are closely shadowing each other over a Turkish energy exploration bid in waters Athens claims as its own.
The statements, views and opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of this site. This site does not give financial, investment or medical advice.
As usual, an excellent post. I would disagree with Alex on one point only: I would not characterize Putin’s hesitancy towards Erdogan as “weakness.” I see nothing weak about Putin, smart yes, weak no. Putin needs Erdogan for one thing and one only, and that is that Erdogan has control over Russia’s access to the Med Sea through the Black Sea, Bosphorus and the Dardanelles. This is of the utmost geopolitical importance to Russia both economically and politically, and it is not negotiable. Both Putin and Erdogan know this, and Erdogan is a small enough man that he uses this… Read more »
Precisely. Alex and Alexander are making a classic mistake of viewing the situation from their angle. Certainly, it would be in the Greeks’ interest fro Russia to take a tougher stance on Erdogan, but would it be in the Russians’? I say, no, for reasons we have both outlined. Thus, Russia’s policy towards Turkey is in no way indicative of any “weakness” on Putin’s part, but rather, it points to his logic, intelligence and sound judgement.
Gentlemen, I cannot for the life of me fathom why you find Russia’s reluctance to take a tougher state on Turkey so perplexing, much less why you would characterise it as “weak”. Yes, we would all very much _like_ for Russia to teach that Turkish thug a lesson, but do you honestly think that would be in Russia’s best interests? Turkey controls access to the Black Sea, which hosts Russia’s only native warm-water ports. What more, it shares a border with Syria, and has the potential to throw a spanner in the works of Russia’s decade-long efforts to liberate and… Read more »
What has France got to do in the Eastern Mediterranean? It is not their territory. They are reviving their old colonial ambitions again, the Syrians had a hard time getting rid of them, when they were subjugated to France as “protectorate”. Beware! The Devil is coming again!
The French are the enemies of the Eastern Mediterranean countries, the French are eternal wannabe colonists, grifters and grafters. Syria fought long and hard, to get rid of French domination. BEWARE OF FRANCE! Wikipedia: “Syria and France negotiated a treaty of independence in September 1936, and Hashim al-Atassi was the first president to be elected under the first incarnation of the modern republic of Syria. However, the treaty never came into force because the French Legislature refused to ratify it. With the fall of France in 1940 during World War II, Syria came under the control of faschist Vichy France. Continuing pressure from Syrian nationalists… Read more »
Olivia, I am not sure I understand your comment because I am not well informed about the history of that region. But it did occur to me that you may have referred to Macron’s visit to Beirut immediately after the Israeli attack, which ended up turning into a “regime change” coup. So when you say “the French” – are you referring to the French people, or its zionist banker cartel puppet Macron? Because they are not the same and those terms are not interchangeable. The French people have been in an ongoing revolution (the Yellow Vests) against their neoliberal puppet… Read more »
Great analysis, as usual.