Turkey’s provocation playbook: Escalation disguised as diplomacy — just days before a scheduled meeting between Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Ankara has stepped up its aggressive rhetoric, once again placing territorial waters firmly back on the agenda and heightening tensions in the Aegean.
Just days before a scheduled meeting between Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Ankara has stepped up its aggressive rhetoric, once again placing territorial waters firmly back on the agenda.
Through its Ministry of Defence, Turkey issued a direct response to recent remarks by Mitsotakis regarding Greece’s sovereign right to extend its territorial waters to 12 nautical miles.
In a formal statement, Turkey’s Defence Ministry said:
“Our country’s position on statements by Greek politicians concerning the extension of territorial waters in the Aegean Sea to 12 miles is clear. As Turkey, we maintain that a fair, equitable and internationally lawful maritime jurisdiction in the Aegean can only be achieved through mutual dialogue and good faith.
“Greece’s unilateral actions, claims and statements, which disregard existing disputes and violate the rights of the Turkish side, are contrary to international law and unacceptable”.
These statements have no legal consequences for our country. In line with the ‘Blue Homeland’ doctrine, the Turkish Armed Forces will continue resolutely to protect all of our nation’s rights and interests in maritime jurisdiction areas.”
Mitsotakis: “A unilateral right that requires no approval”
Responding to the issue in a television interview, Mitsotakis reiterated that Greece’s right to extend its territorial waters is non-negotiable.
“Greece has already extended its territorial waters. We did so in the Ionian Sea. This is a unilateral right of our country and does not require approval from anyone,” he said.
Addressing the broader prospects for resolving disputes with Turkey, Mitsotakis acknowledged that international arbitration could, in theory, offer a pathway forward — but stressed that current conditions make such a step extremely difficult.
“So long as the theory of ‘grey zones’ remains on the table, so long as sovereignty — not merely sovereign rights — is being challenged, and while a threat of war hangs over us, reaching that point becomes very hard,” he said.
The Prime Minister added that Greece has never adopted stagnation as its foreign policy doctrine.
“Greece is moving forward. Greece is rearming. We have a duty to strengthen our Armed Forces. We do not wait for windows of opportunity with Turkey without simultaneously investing in our own strength.”
