Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar made new incendiary statements against Greece on Friday during an event of the Turkish Air Force.
"We have always and everywhere responded to this indiscretion of Greece and we will continue to do so. We have repeatedly reminded our counterparts to learn from history, and we continue to do so. It was Greece that made an invasion attempt in 1919-1922 with the encouragement and support of certain countries," Akar said.
"Then Greece, which was disappointed, took out its prime ministers, ministers and even the chief of the Army General Staff. We say you will get nowhere with this so-called equipment, so-called alliance. Hold the hand of peace that we have extended, let us continue our work in accordance with international law in the framework of good neighbourly relations.
"We say that Greece should stop seeing Turkey as a threat. Turkey is not a threat, it is an extremely powerful, effective and reliable ally for the alliance. We have always said and we continue to say that we will not allow any fait accompli, that we will not violate our rights or those of our Cypriot brothers, and that we will protect our rights and interests in the Aegean and the Eastern Mediterranean, as we have done until today."
Noting that the Turks are closely watching what Greece is doing, Akar said: "We gave the necessary response in the framework of reciprocity for what needs to be done both at the table and on the field."
Stating that Greece's provocations, aggressive actions, rhetoric, disregard for International Law and illegal actions continue, Akar claimed that Greek warplanes harassed Turkish F-16s on a NATO mission, something denied by Athens.
Noting that the coordination of this mission began in July, Akar said: "From July 2, the activity was reported on all NATO channels, everyone heard and learned about it. It is impossible not to find out. And yet, they intercepted our F-16s, which were performing their NATO duty. Greece made an extremely negative and false statement saying: 'We did not know that these were Turkish aircraft'.
"These are extremely hostile, wrong moves. Regarding them, all the competent authorities, both in NATO and here, are making every effort and NATO is following Greece's lie and denial in the eyes of the countries.
"NATO and third countries should see what Greece is doing. We warned all our allies about Greece. We expect them to be objective. We want them to know that the actions and rhetoric here are not about friendship or alliance.
"As Turkey we continue our work as the country that takes the burden of NATO and our allies. We will continue to do what we have to do in this matter.
"We have always and everywhere responded to this perversion of Greece and we will continue to do so. It is impossible to take a step back on our rights and interests in any way. We have sensitively protected the rights and interests of our country and nation and will continue to do so," added the Turkish Defense Minister.
It is recalled that Turkey occupies Cypriot, Syrian and Iraqi territory, whereas Greece has not been at war since 1974 following the Turkish invasion of northern Cyprus.
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