Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has called on Greece to stop what he described as the militarization of Aegean islands with demilitarized status, warning that Turkey’s calm and peaceful approach should not be interpreted as a sign of weakness.
Erdoğan said Turkey wants to maintain good relations with Greece but would not allow what he described as violations of Ankara’s rights.
“Greece must abandon this wrong path and stop arming islands with demilitarized status,” Erdoğan said.
The Turkish president stressed that Ankara’s preference for dialogue and a peaceful approach should not be misinterpreted.
“Anyone who sees Turkey’s calm and reasonable approach as weakness is making a very serious mistake,” he said.
Erdoğan added that Turkey does not claim the territory of other countries but expects its own rights to be respected.
According to the Turkish president, ignoring or violating international agreements benefits no one.
Erdoğan made the remarks while returning from Bishkek, where he had attended a summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation.
The issue of the status and militarization of islands in the Aegean Sea remains one of the longstanding sources of tension between Turkey and Greece, with Ankara and Athens holding opposing interpretations of the relevant international agreements.
