A mere days ago on Wednesday, Greece issued formal letters to NATO HQ, the EU, and UN warning that a Ukraine-style war is looming with Turkey. The two have long been locked in disputes over maritime rights, the status of Greece's Aegean islands, and repeat airspace violations.
On Saturday a dangerous live fire incident in the eastern Mediterranean has served to inflame tensions further, and displays how on the brink the two countries could be to entering an active conflict, which would be the second afflicting Europe. "Turkey said the Greek Coast Guard fired on a ship in international waters in the northern Aegean Sea, marking another potential escalation of tension between the NATO countries Saturday," Bloomberg reports.
Turkish media is describing "harassment fire" which is alleged to have occurred a mere 11 nautical miles off Turkey’s southwestern island of Bozcaada, and 20km from the Turkish mainland. While the vessel was not a Turkey-flagged ship (if so, it likely would have triggered a Turkish military response), but has been identified as the Comoros-flagged vessel the Anatolian, Turkey's government is alarmed given it happened so close its coast.
While some initial reports have called the Anatolian vessel a cargo ship, some Turkish media reports are identifying it as a ro-ro ship, which ferries cars and passengers among islands - though in this case there haven't been reports that any passengers were on board other than the crew.
What's more is that Turkey's coast guard is claiming to have chased the Greek ships out of the area after the international vessel was "attacked":
The ship named "Anatolian,” which has a crew of 18 – six Egyptian, four Somalian, five Azerbaijani and three Turkish nationals – was attacked while sailing in international waters, Turkish Coast Guard Command further said in the statement.
After learning about the incident, the Turkish coast guard dispatched two boats and the Greek boats left the area.
None of the foreign ship's 18 international crew (again, which included Turkish nationals) have been reported injured. Athens is meanwhile describing the incident as a matter of exercising its territorial sovereignty and that the gunfire was only a "warning" - saying it won't bow to threats from Turkey.
Turkey state sources quickly published video purporting to show the moment the ship was fired upon:
The incident comes at a sensitive moment regarding ongoing Greece-Turkey disputes over islands near the coast, given Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has this month threatened his forces will intervene if Greece keeps "militarizing" islands which are under historic treaties.
But here is the Greek government's explanation of the Saturday live fire incident, according to Bloomberg:
The vessel wasn’t emitting a signal, according to a Greek shipping ministry official, so the Greek Coast Guard requested it stop to be boarded. The captain refused the control and sped off, prompting the Coast Guard to fire warning shots in the air and not at the vessel, said the official, requesting anonymity as details have not yet been made public.
The incident serves as a reminder that tensions continue to percolate in the region. Ahead of next year’s elections, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has stepped up criticism of what Turkey calls a growing Greek military buildup on islands close to its coastline as well as Western military support to Athens, with which Ankara has long-running territorial disputes.
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis generally addressed the latest tensions at the Thessaloniki International Fair in northern Greece later on Saturday, saying Greece would not bow to threats.
Mitsotakis suggested this fresh incident is part of a broader narrative of Turkey concocting accusations of an unlawful interference, and as the latest in Ankara's "bullying" rhetoric.
Things really escalated starting a week ago when Erdogan warned Greece in a public speech, "We may come down suddenly one night," adding: "Look at history, if you go further, the price will be heavy."
A mere days ago on Wednesday, Greece issued formal letters to NATO HQ, the EU, and UN warning that a Ukraine-style war is looming with Turkey. The two have long been locked in disputes over maritime rights, the status of Greece’s Aegean islands, and repeat airspace violations.
On Saturday a dangerous live fire incident in the eastern Mediterranean has served to inflame tensions further, and displays how on the brink the two countries could be to entering an active conflict, which would be the second afflicting Europe. “Turkey said the Greek Coast Guard fired on a ship in international waters in the northern Aegean Sea, marking another potential escalation of tension between the NATO countries Saturday,” Bloomberg reports.
Turkish media is describing “harassment fire” which is alleged to have occurred a mere 11 nautical miles off Turkey’s southwestern island of Bozcaada, and 20km from the Turkish mainland. While the vessel was not a Turkey-flagged ship (if so, it likely would have triggered a Turkish military response), but has been identified as the Comoros-flagged vessel the Anatolian, Turkey’s government is alarmed given it happened so close its coast.
While some initial reports have called the Anatolian vessel a cargo ship, some Turkish media reports are identifying it as a ro-ro ship, which ferries cars and passengers among islands – though in this case there haven’t been reports that any passengers were on board other than the crew.
What’s more is that Turkey’s coast guard is claiming to have chased the Greek ships out of the area after the international vessel was “attacked”:
The ship named “Anatolian,” which has a crew of 18 – six Egyptian, four Somalian, five Azerbaijani and three Turkish nationals – was attacked while sailing in international waters, Turkish Coast Guard Command further said in the statement.
After learning about the incident, the Turkish coast guard dispatched two boats and the Greek boats left the area.
None of the foreign ship’s 18 international crew (again, which included Turkish nationals) have been reported injured. Athens is meanwhile describing the incident as a matter of exercising its territorial sovereignty and that the gunfire was only a “warning” – saying it won’t bow to threats from Turkey.
Turkey state sources quickly published video purporting to show the moment the ship was fired upon:
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The incident comes at a sensitive moment regarding ongoing Greece-Turkey disputes over islands near the coast, given Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has this month threatened his forces will intervene if Greece keeps “militarizing” islands which are under historic treaties.
But here is the Greek government’s explanation of the Saturday live fire incident, according to Bloomberg:
The vessel wasn’t emitting a signal, according to a Greek shipping ministry official, so the Greek Coast Guard requested it stop to be boarded. The captain refused the control and sped off, prompting the Coast Guard to fire warning shots in the air and not at the vessel, said the official, requesting anonymity as details have not yet been made public.
The incident serves as a reminder that tensions continue to percolate in the region. Ahead of next year’s elections, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has stepped up criticism of what Turkey calls a growing Greek military buildup on islands close to its coastline as well as Western military support to Athens, with which Ankara has long-running territorial disputes.
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis generally addressed the latest tensions at the Thessaloniki International Fair in northern Greece later on Saturday, saying Greece would not bow to threats.
Mitsotakis suggested this fresh incident is part of a broader narrative of Turkey concocting accusations of an unlawful interference, and as the latest in Ankara’s “bullying” rhetoric.
Things really escalated starting a week ago when Erdogan warned Greece in a public speech, “We may come down suddenly one night,” adding: “Look at history, if you go further, the price will be heavy.”
