CoE Chair, Greek Minister Varvitsiotis: East-Med. Tension is due to Use of Military Force by Turkey

 

*Strasbourg/Angelo Marcopolo/- There is No Dialogue with a Gun on the Table and War Threats, and the Reason for which there is Tension in Eastern Mediterranean's Energy Resources' Hotspot Nowadays, is Turkey's abuse of Military Force, Instead of Peaceful Negotiations, clearly Denounced CoE's President-in-office and Greek Minister for European Affairs, Miltiades Varvitsiotis, who was invited as Keynote Speaker at the PanEuropean Organisation of Strasbourg Assembly's Standing Committee, (of Equivalent Status as its Plenary), in Reply to Critical Questions raised by Turkish MPs.

----------------------------

 - At First, the rotating Chairman of CoE's Organisation for Human Rights, Democracy and Rule of Law (for the Period of 7 to 11/2020), Observed the Fact that, as a matter of General Principle ,"CoE is Not Dealing with Eastern Mediterranean Tensions".

 + Moreover, "there are Other Fora where we can Discuss that": F.ex., "We Expressed Our Views", Together "With Turkish Foreign Minister Mr. Cavusoglou, at EU Parliament's Foreign Affairs Committee, Last Week" in Brussels, he noted, (pointing at a Meeting where Many MEPs appeared quite Critical vis a vis the Turkish MFA in this case).

- However, "Although" that's true, "I'd like to Reply to the Question (raised by a Turkish MP Today) on those Tensions", he Accepted.

>>> -In Fact, "the Tensions in Eastern Mediterranen are Not Provoked by Peaceful Events", Varvitsiotis observed. On the Contrary, "They are Provoked by the use of Military Force !"

  - "And", particularly, "the Presence of a Great part of Turkish Naval Fleet in the Eastern Mediterranean, Escorting an (Oil/Gas) Exploratory Vessel", (Often, Notoriously, inside EU Members Cyprus or Greece's EEZ) "is, definitively, Not a Sign of promoting Stability, Security and a Peaceful Way of Negotiating with Partners in Good Will...", he Criticized.

- On the Contrary, -"We have Urged (Ankara) to Refrain from Unilateral Acts, in Areas that are Contested", (as, f.ex., illegal Search and/or Drilliing for Gas/Oil in Non-Delimitated Zones, Revendicated by Other Countries, which is tantamount with Violating the International Law of the Sea), "and to Go Back to the Table of Dialogue", Varvitsiotis invited.

- "This will remain Greece's Position, throughout this whole Period, Because We Believe that, with Partners and Neighbours, we Have to Discuss, and Not to Go at outrage...

- So that, Turkey "CanNot come Back to the Table of Discussion by having ...a fully Loaded Gun on the Table, and a Premisse, from the Other Side, that Either You Agree with Me, Or we Go into War !"   

 - "This is Not the Kind of Dialogue that We Expect. We Expect a Dialogue that comes With a Refrain from using a Beligerant Tone, and, Definitively, From using Military Means, as a way To Push for the Outcome that the Other Partner Wants".

- "Therefore, we Welcome all the Initiatives, from the EU, from Member States like Germany, from the USA, (etc) that Search for DesEscalation, and Return on a Table of Discussions", he Concluded.

Turkey has Already Chassed, by Bullying Threats from its WarShips, an Italian Drilling Ship of ENI, which Peacefully acted in Agreement with Cyprus' Government, inside that EU Member's EEZ, located Between the Southern Coasts of the Island and Egypt, one of the Countries with which Cyprus has Signed relevant Sea Zones' Delimitation Treaties, (as, inter alia, Also an Explicit Video, Audio-Registrations, and Ships' Movements' capture by Satellites, Clearly Showed earlier, During an EU Heads of State/Government Summit in Brussels).

But, Ankara, on the Contrary, did Not Dare make Any such Military Bullying Attempt vis a vis ...USA's or France's Drilling Ships there, which Operated also in Agreement with the legitimate Government of Cyprus...

But it has, Many Times, attempted to Block and/or Threatend with "NAFTEX" for Turkish WarShips so-called "Military Exercises", various Parts of EU Member Cyprus' EEZ, (near which it has Already Started to Find Important Energy Resources, as well as Egypt and Israel, etc., With whom Nicosia has Signed relevant Delimitation Agreements).

In Addition, Turkey has Notoriously Send, Numerous Times, its own Drilling Ships provocatively Inside EU Members' Greece and Cyprus' EEZ, escorted by a Heavy presence of Turkish WarShips and Military Planes, Both at the Mediterranean and in the Aegean Sea.

Last, but not least, various Ankara Government's Top Officials have Often abused of Multiple Provocations, Beligerant Rhetorics, and Even Brutal War Threats, especially Against Greece, in this same regard, (one of the Latest being, f.ex., the Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar's reported Call for "Greece to Shut Up", or, "Otherwise, ...Become a <<Mezes>> (be Eaten as Meat) !"

While, almost at the Same Time, just Last Week-End, Turkish President Tayip Erdogan "Warned" the French President Emmanuel Macron, "Not to Search Quarell with Turkey" (sic !), Accusing France for alleged "Massacres", and Even Approaching Dangerously ISIL's Deadly Terrorists' Propaganda accross Africa's Sahel, by Slandering a French and EU Anti-Islamist Terrorism presence at "Mali", since 2013...

They were Both Reacting Against a Call, by a joint Declaration of "MED-7" Summit's Heads of State/Governments (all EU Member States, linked to the Mediterranean), these Days at Corsica, (See : ..., etc), to "Reply to Turkey's Aggressions in the Mediterranean with All adequate Means of the EU", Unless it Really Commits to a Peaceful Dialogue and Legal ways to settle such Issues.

That "MED-7" Move came at the Eve of EU's Forthcoming Exceptional 27 Heads of State/Governmet Summit on September 24-25 in Brussels, mainly due to deal with Turkey's Behavior in Eastern Mediterranean, Aegan Sea and elsewhere vis a vis European interests, on the Occasion of which, Ankara has been Repeatedly Warned of Sanctions, unless it Sincerely Engages in a really Peaceful Dialogue for Solutions according also to International Law, (See:http://www.eurofora.net/newsflashes/news/med7summitincorsica.html).

- Meanwhile, in Parallel, the President of EU Parliament's Biggest Group, that of ChristianDemocrats/EPP, Manfred Weber from Germany, stressed Today, that "We Stand with Greece and Cyprus ! Europe should stay United and keep the Pressure on Erdogan in the EasternMediterranean. We will Not be Blackmailed at the the Border, we will Not be Provoked at Sea. We doN't want Conflict, But We will Not Back Away".

(../..)

("Draft-News")

-----------------------