Today, Friday, German Foreign Minister Annaline Bierbock pointed out that the islands in the Aegean claimed by Turkey are Greek islands and called on Ankara to respect Athens’ sovereignty hours before her scheduled visit to Turkey.
Burbock, along with her Greek counterpart Nikos Dendias, stated on the second day of her visit to the Greek capital: “The Greek islands of Lesvos, Chios, Rhodes and many other islands are Greek lands, and no one has the right to doubt that.”
Greece and Turkey, border countries and members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, have historically clashed over air and sea space in the Aegean Sea, where tensions have recently risen following the discovery of rich gas reserves.
In recent months, Ankara has threatened to challenge Greek sovereignty over its islands in the Aegean if it continues to deploy forces there.
Beerbock stressed that the German government “leaves no doubt that we are in solidarity with Greece”, calling for dialogue between the two neighboring countries and “respect for the sovereignty of each of them”.
“It is clear to me that we must resolve disputes between NATO partners through dialogue,” said Beerbock, who is due to travel to Turkey on Friday afternoon for a two-day visit.
She added at a joint press conference that “differences within the ranks of the alliance are exactly what Russian President Vladimir Putin wants.”
For his part, the Greek Foreign Minister criticized the expected delivery of German submarines to Turkey.
At the conclusion of the meeting with his German counterpart, Dendias said: “With these submarines there is a great danger that the balance of power in the eastern Mediterranean will be upset” and that the balance will tilt “in favor of a country that, despite NATO membership, (threatened ) against Greece.
Dendias wrote to former German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas in 2020 to prevent the sale of submarines, frigates and aircraft to Turkey.
Ankara has entered into a joint venture with German firm ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems to build six submarines in Turkey. Turkey remains keen to buy new F-16 fighter jets from the US and accuses the Greek-American lobby in Washington of trying to block the deal.
Athens, for its part, recently signed a multibillion-dollar agreement with France to purchase Rafale combat aircraft and Pilara-class frigates and is preparing to order at least one squadron of American F-35 fighters in the near future.
In the context of the German reparations case, Nikos Dendias recalled that Athens retains its claims for compensation for the period of German occupation from 1941 to 1944. But Annalena Beerbock confirmed the position of Berlin, which sees no legal basis for such requests.
