East Med talks vital for ‘averting accident’

In the aftermath of a meeting with a top NATO delegation, Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu reiterated Ankara’s commitment to a political solution to the Eastern Mediterranean dispute, saying that dialogue is the only way to preempt an ‘accident’ between

TURKEY will continue to protect its rights and the rights of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) in the Eastern Mediterranean, Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu said yesterday during a press conference with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg. The foreign minister urged Greece to commit to dialogue to avoid an “accident” between the two NATO allies. “Even though Greece had a negative attitude in beginning, it is now attending talks, and we appreciate this,” the foreign minister said.

“Still,” he continued, “I express my gratitude to NATO for its mediating role,” noting that Turkey would prefer to avoid clashes with Greece. The planned coordination meeting scheduled to take place between Turkish and Greek delegations at NATO headquarters yesterday has been delayed due to technical reasons. Last week, NATO said that a military deconfliction mechanism for the neighbors’ Eastern Mediterranean disputes had been established following a series of technical meetings between the military delegations of Greece and Turkey at NATO’s headquarters in Brussels.

The mechanism is designed to reduce the risk of incidents and accidents in the Eastern Mediterranean and includes the creation of a hotline between Athens and Ankara to facilitate deconfliction at sea or in the air, NATO added. The Turkish and Greek military delegations have agreed on “general principles” in NATO talks, Turkey’s Defense Ministry also said following NATO’s announcement. Both nations’ militaries have held a series of NATO-hosted technical talks, starting from Sept. 10. The meetings were planned after a phone call between President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Stoltenberg in early September.

Despite Ankara’s well-intentioned steps, security sources, speaking on the condition of anonymity due to media restrictions, noted that Athens’ response aims to disrupt talks, which was demonstrated by Greece’s recent actions that do not comply with the dialogue efforts. Greece on Saturday issued two new Navtex notices covering a wide range of territory, including Turkey’s area of responsibility, triggering new tensions between the two countries.

Shortly after Greece’s move, Turkey’s Antalya Navtex station issued an alert restating that the area is, in fact, Turkey’s area of responsibility. Navtex, or navigational telex, is a maritime communications system that allows ships to inform other vessels about their presence in an area, as well as other information.

IN a statement made by the Antalya Navtex station, an unauthorized station transmitted an announcement regarding an area within the Turkish Navtex service, prompting Ankara to reissue its message for its area of responsibility.

The Turkish declaration also noted military shooting drills would be held in the mentioned zones in the Eastern Mediterranean on Oct. 6 and Oct. 8.

Security sources, speaking on the condition of anonymity due to media restrictions, stressed that the Navtex notices issued by Greece via an unauthorized station in a wide area in the Eastern Mediterranean for the purpose of military training does not solve any problems and only increases tensions in the region.

Underscoring that Turkey prefers solutions in the Aegean and Eastern Mediterranean within the scope of international law, dialogue and good neighborly relations, the sources said Ankara is taking a number of steps in those directions.

They said Turkey considered reducing the scope of some military exercises and even delaying others in order to contribute to the solution.

Tensions have been running high for weeks in the Eastern Mediterranean, as Greece has disputed Turkey’s energy exploration. Turkey sent out drillships to explore for energy on its continental shelf, asserting its own rights in the region, as well as those of the TRNC.

ANKARA EXPECTS NATO SUPPORT

Despite the recent tension with Greece, NATO allies have decided to ramp up their support for Turkey, with Stoltenberg saying Ankara’s security was synonymous with that of the alliance.

Praising Turkey’s role in counterterrorism, Stoltenberg said the country had played a major role in the fight against terrorism.

Çavuşoğlu, on the other hand, criticized NATO for its inadequate backing of Turkey in the war on terror, saying that more should be done.

“We expect more concrete support from NATO countries in the fight against terrorism. At least they can stop supporting terrorist groups,” he said.

NATO countries have been criticized for providing safe haven for the PKK and the Gülenist Terror Group (FETÖ), both of which pose threats to Turkey’s peace and stability. While the PKK is recognized as a terrorist group by the EU and the U.S., FETÖ is still waiting for such recognition despite killing 251 people in a coup attempt back in 2016. FETÖ’s head Fetullah Gülen also resides in the U.S. despite multiple demands from Turkey to extradite him with pages of evidence being presented proving his terrorist links.

TURKEY NEEDS S-400S

On Turkey’s purchase of S-400 missile systems from Russia, Çavuşoğlu said: “Since we could not get the Patriot or any other air defense systems from our allies, we had to buy S-400.”

“And we see the sensitivity this creates within NATO,” he added, reiterating that Turkey must also to meet its security needs.

“NATO and its allies need to understand this too,” he stressed.

“This is not only about the air defense system but also that the allies should not cause each other difficulties for different reasons in meeting other needs in the defense industry,” he said, adding this was one of the issues he discussed with the NATO head.

Since 2017, Turkey and the U.S. have been at odds over Turkey’s decision to buy S-400s, a Russian-made missile defense system, and U.S. threats to break its contract to sell Turkey F-35 fighter jets over the dispute.

For his part, Stoltenberg said: “Turkey is a valued ally contributing to NATO in different ways.” NATO remains strongly committed to Turkey’s security, he added.

“We are concerned about the consequences of the Turkish acquisition of the S-400 system,” he said, adding that the system can pose a risk to ally aircraft and can lead to U.S. sanctions.

Underlining that the S-400 system cannot be integrated into NATO’s aerial missile defense system, he urged Turkey to work with all the allies to find alternative solutions.