Dec. 9, 2019
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan fired new threats against Greece and said that “Greece will pay the price for its actions.”
In an interview on Turkish public television TRT on Monday night and a few days after meeting with Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis in London, Erdogan escalated his rhetoric. However, he threatened not only Greece but also Israel and the Libyan opposition of General Haftar..
Referring to reactions after he signed the “maritime boundaries” agreement with Libya that change the balances in the East Mediterranean Sea, Erdogan said:
“Greece, Israel and the administration of General Haftar cannot take steps without our approval. Games with unilateral actions have broken down.”
“We have been threatened, we have rights and we do not care. With this agreement Turkey exercised its rights under international law,” he added.
He stressed “we will conduct joint explorations with Libya. There are many inside Turkey and abroad who have felt uncomfortable with this deal. We will buy another drilling rig and will start working in international waters. ”
The Turkish president described the expulsion of the Libyan ambassador by Greece as an “international scandal” and threatened that “Greece will pay the price for its actions internationally.”
“Greece’s hands are tied and this is driving them crazy,” he said.
At the same time, he reportedly expressed his willingness to open a dialogue with Athens.
He added that The Greeks “were always asking and getting what they wanted. They will no longer be able to do so, and we will demand our rights. Let no one doubt that we will not allow unilateral actions.”
“With this memorandum [Turkey] has shown its determination to protect its rights under international law in the eyes of international public opinion,” the Turkish president argued.
It should be noted that Turkey has never signed the UN Convention of the Law of the Sea, which the Turkish President loves to cite.
Erdogan’s threats come just after after a meeting with Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis in London on the sidelines of the NATO Summit last week.
And hours after the head of the Libyan Fleet, Faraj Al Mahdawi told Greek private Alpha TV that he has “orders to sink the Turkish drilling ships if they come to Libya.” Al Mahdawi is chief in the Libyan National Army under General Haftar, the major opposition to the government in Tripolis that signed the agreement with Turkey.
Published at https://www.keeptalkinggreece.com/2019/12/09/erdogan-threatens-greece-will-pay-the-price-for-its-actions/
