Spokesperson for Turkey's ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), Ömer Çelik, has made a direct threat against Greece saying that they can resolve their differences "on the battle field."
Çelik, who is the spokesperson of the political party that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan belongs to told political editors that Turkey was ousted from the negotiating table and warned Athens that they could resolve their differences on the battlefield instead.
"We have enough diplomatic experience not to turn a blind eye to those who are exploiting the negotiating table to support the de facto situations they have created on the battlefield. Nothing can be achieved through intimidation and coercion. Greece must understand this, Çelik said, adding that "in the Aegean, in the eastern Mediterranean, we want - unquestionably - all issues to be resolved through diplomacy, but those who use diplomacy to take a breath and form alliances against Turkey, we have to answer on the battlefield."
He then accused Europe of copying Greece's statements against Turkey, while ignoring that Washington also condemned Turkey's provocations in the East Mediterranean.
"After the Oruç Reis returned to its duties in the eastern Mediterranean, after its maintenance, statements began to come one after another, over and over again. Can such stupid statements be made without any legal basis?" he questioned, without referring what exactly was illegal about the statements.
"Look at the statements coming from different countries, names I do not say," he continued. "As if each of them was written by the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs. As if they had been copied and pasted. We are looking within our continental shelf, within our maritime jurisdictions. 15 km away from the mainland."
He then went onto claim that accusations of Turkey destabilizing the region are "absurd."
"They are caught and they say absurd things that Turkey is a factor of instability here. The Turkish state has been committed since the beginning of Ataturk to 'Peace in the homeland, peace in the world'. We have the power to give the answer we give at the table and on the battlefield," Çelik said for a second time.
He did not end his tirade there though.
"We are ready to respond to those against us who - with their impositions and without recognizing the value of consultation and diplomacy - want to constantly violate the rights of Turkey and the [illegal and unrecognized] Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus. Nothing can be achieved through intimidation and coercion," said the AKP spokesman, calling the map of Seville a "scrap paper" through which - as he claimed - Athens is trying to impose its positions on Kastelorizo without providing any evidence as we have become accustomed to with claims made by Turkey.
"Greece is trying to acquire maritime jurisdiction of 40,000 sq.km. in Kastelorizo bringing an invasion paper towel, which they call the Seville Agreement. Can something so stupid apply? If one sees it with the same logic then the whole Mediterranean and the Ionian would belong to Greece. Those who say that Turkey is increasing the tension know very well that Greece is escalating it," he said in spite of no country supporting its view that Greece is escalating tensions.
Çelik said that "Turkey sees the negotiating table as the strongest territory, but we are ready to fight on the battlefield with those who do not want negotiations," while describing Greece's NAVTEX for military exercises on October 29, on the day of the national holiday of Turkey, as "provocative."
This of course omits that Turkey first called a NAVTEX for literally in the middle of the Aegean to conduct live fire exercises on October 28, one of Greece's biggest secular national holiday's to commemorate Greece's victory in the Greco-Italian War in 1940.
