Masks Fall ? Greece Ready for Gas Talks with Turkey, but it Sends more Drilling+WarShips in EU's EEZ

*Strasbourg/Angelo Marcopolo/- Turkey Droped its Masks, after Greek Government Spokesman, Stelios Petsas, stressed that Athens was "Ready to Start Exploratory Contacts even with Turkey, if they wish so", on the Eastern Mediterranean Gas/Oil row, while Ankara just "Replied" by ...Sending anew illegal Drilling Ships, escorted by Warships, inside EU Member States Greece and Cyprus' EEZ...

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- Indeed, "We (Greece) Wish to Solve the Only Pending Issue that we have with Turkey, i.e. the OutLine of our respective Sea Zones, with Exploratory Contacts", Because, in general, "we Wish to Discuss, Always with due Respect to the International Law of the Sea, and Solve such kind of Issues", Petsas said.

- Already, "the Other Side (Ankara) Knows that we have Appointed the Head of Our Delegation, and Wait from them (to do alike), while we are also Ready to Start Even on August " 2020, particularly "After the Positive Message that it (Ankara) send with a Step towards Desescalation", (i.e. by, Briefly, Retrieaving its Ships from EU's EEZ), he said

- "If they (Turkey) want to Delay, to Backpedal, that's part of the (Diplomatic) Game". But, "what we (Greece) do Not Accept are Threats and Accomplished Facts !", he Warned.

- So, "we are Not Afraid, but Remain Vigilent", Petsas Firmly pointed out, (Comp. also Other Statements by the Greek Government Spokesman, in Reply to "Eurofora"s Questions, on EU's General Interest to Protect Mediterranean Energy Sources from Turkey's Bullying, during the December 2019 EU Summit in Brussels, at : http://www.eurofora.net/newsflashes/news/eusummitslamsturkishlibyanflop.html, etc).

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- However, the Only "Response" from the Turkish Side was, this Same Day, to Claim that Greece and Egypt would Not have Any Common Borders in the Mediterranean Sea at all, and to Slam a Peaceful Deal Between Athens and Cairo on the Outlines of their respective EEZs' as "Nul and Not Existing", Because that Area would Belong to Ankara's EEZ, according to its own view, Threatening that this Turkish point would be Proven not only Diplomatically, But Even "on the Spot" !

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+ Moreover, Turkish President Tayip Erdogan, (Provocatively Filmed in front of the Recently anew Desecrated OverMillenary Christian Church of Sainte Sophie at Constantinople/Istanbul, a UNESCO-Protected Historic/Cultural Monument, Transformed into a Islamist Mosque), Announced that Ankara Sends anew Gas Drilling Ships and WarShips inside Greece and Cyprus' EEZ, including with Turkish HydroCarbon Exploration Ship "Barbaros":

- The Agreement between Greece and Egypt "has Not Any (legal) Value", Erdogan Claimed, and Turkey "Will Execute, Firmly," its own Deal with Libya, he Vowed, (as he called a Doubtful and Provocative Paper Signed by Ankara and Tripoli's Controversial and Contested "Prime Minister" - Not Recognized Even by the Libyan Parliament -  who did Not Control the 2/3 of that Country, under Libyan General Haftar's rule, Despite a Turkish Deadly Military Intervention importing Foreign Extremist Islamist Groups from Syria+), which practicaly Ignores All Greek Islands (as Rhode, Creta, and Many Others...) Between those 2 very Remotely located States.                                                                                                           

- Erdogan Claimed, Filmed in front of Sainte Sophie (Agia Sofia in its Historic, Original Name, during the Christian Greek Empire of Byzantium, 330-1.453), that Turkey would have Only Briefly "Paused", in Recent Days, its illegal Drilling and WarShips' Incursions inside EU Member Countries Greece and Cyprus' EEZ, upon German Chancellor Merkel's Request, for an undetermined Deal Pleasing Turkey. "But", Curiously Accusing Athens and Cairo to "go Back on Their Word" (sic !), with "an Agreement which hasN't Any Legal Base" (sic !), the  embatled Turkish President Threatened "to Resume Immediately" his illegal "Drilling" inside Europe's EEZ, with "Barbaros" and WarShips.

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- On the Contrary, Egypt's Foreign Ministry Spokesman, Ahmed Hafez, declared his Surprise for the fact that Ankara reacts with so Harsh "Claims, against an Agreement that it (Turkey) has Not even Seen, neither its concrete Details".

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- Greek Foreign Minister Dendias (an Experienced, former Long-Time MEP and Rapporteur at CoE's Assembly in Strasbourg), who had Just Finalized a Long Negotiation, and Signed the Greco-Egyptian Deal in Cairo, Together with his Counterpart, Egypt's Foreign Minister Sucri, Explained, in this regard, that "the Agreement ... Foresees Also Other Deals, with Other Countries, f.ex. a Future Negotiation with Libya, Agreements with Cyprus, and, sometime, (Even) with Turkey". "But, Judging from its Reactions, I doN't find this very Imminent...", he regretted.  

Athens has Already Signed such Deals with Italy and Egypt, reportedly eyes also with Albania, and most probably Cyprus.

- "I am Surprized by the Fact that Turkey Abandoned the Exploratory Contacts (as Also Back on 2016) under the influence of an UnExplained Anger", and "I DoN't Understand How a Legal Agreement, which Contributes to Stability and Security in the Region ... could produce Such Reactions. Turkey is Welcome to Discuss with us (Greece), on the Same Terms as Egypt and Italy", Dendias proposed. 

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- Prime Minister of Greece, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, (Speaking from the Island of Rhodus), stressed that this "Succesfull" "Agreement with Egypt, Sends ... the Message that, When Diplomacy Works, on the Basis of International Law, it Can Bring Results ! And it's Only the International Law which Guarantees, in fine, the Harmonious Co-Existence of Peoples, and the Peaceful ReSolution of Any Differencies".

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- A USA's State Department's Spokesman, at Washington DC Headquarters,  Observed, Earlier Today, on the occasion of this Greco-Egyptian Deal, that the US Encourages All States to Solve Peacefully their Disagreements, concerning Issues of Maritime Limits' Jurisdiction, (Obviously pointing mainy at Ankara).

On the Contrary, Turkish WarShips have Notoriously Bullied and Threatened even Italian ENI's Energy Exploration Ships to Work in Cyprus' EEZ, in Agreement with Nicosia, and Repeatedly Violated Both Greece's and Cyprus' EEZ on Pretext of illegal "Drillings" by Caricatural Bogus Turkish Ships, (with locacious Pittoresque Names as "Barbaros", and Even "Chegis Khan" - sic !) Never Finding Anything Else than Negative, Sterile, and CounerProductive Tension and Trouble.

In Such Conditions, some Ankara's Obviously Hypocritical Claims to "just wish to Equitably (sic !) Share Eastern Mediterranean's Energy Resources", Inevitably Recall the image of an Armed Burglar telling to a Terrified Family into whose Home he has just Intruded Brutally, that he Only Wishes to "Share" Their Belongings...

- But, the President of EU Parliament's Security and Defense Committee, former French EU Minister, and Director of the prestigious ENA School for Top Officials, Based in Strasbourg, "ReNew/Liberal" MEP Nathalie Loiseau, has Already Observed, Earlier in Strasbourg, that, in Fact, ...Whenever those Bullying Turkish WarShips Intruders See some French Military Ships and/or AirPlanes approach such Hotspots, they Suddenly ..."Vanish", (and, Afterwards, attempt to Reappear Elsewhere ) !... Something which seems to Go Also for USA's Energy Companies drilling in Cyprus, (etc).

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As for anOther Ankara's Claim that its Revendications on Mediterranean Sea's Energy Resources should Not be at all Limited at the Turkish Coasts, Obviously, it Forgets Not Only the Modern International Law's Principal Rules, as far as Islands' Legitimate Rights to have a Recognized Shelf are concerned, But Also the Symbolic Historic Fact that, Already, Since During the 5 Centuries BC, f.ex., the Beautiful and Centraly Located Island of Delos, (Mythical Birthplace of Ancient Gods "Apollo" and "Athena", the 1st having Inspired Zoroastrians and Partly Christianism, etc), by being Situated Right in the Middle of Aegean Sea (Near World-Famous Mukonos), has Served, for Long Centuries, as the HeadQuarters of the 1st European "Con-Federation" of States, Uniting, in a Maritime Network, Adriatique Sea's Corfu, up to Buzance (Later OverMillenary Constantinople, Nowadays Istanbul), Methana (Nowadays Thessaloniki), through Athens, Ephesos (alias Neo-Classical Greek Smyrne, Nowadays Izmir), Rhodos, (etc. : See relevant MAPs), Before Becoming, Later-on, the Main European/International Commercial "Hub" (a kind of "New York" of the Antiquity, as UNESCO Describes it), practicaly Linking the Middle East to Europe through its Trans-National and Pluri-Cultural Sea Networks.

These were Landmark Historical Peaceful Times, of Great European Civilisations, (Greek, Roman, etc), After the Defeat of Asian Persian Millitary Attempts to Invade and Occupy all Ancient Europe. Following the World-Famous (even ..Hollywood-Filmed) Battles of Marathon, Thermopylae, Salamina, and Platea.

Mutatis-Mutandis, something Similar to the Equaly Famous, 1st Victorious Naval Battle of a Modern United European Army (Bringing Together the People of Many European Countries), at Lepante (1.571), at a Sea-Link between Greece and Italy, (against a Turkish Fleet having just Cowardly Massacrated even the Prisoners after they Invaded Famagusta Seaport in Cyprus, then Led by Venice). A Victory (which Liberated 12.000 Christian Slaves, since then Celebrated each October 7 Anniversary as "the Day of Our Lady of Victory") mainly, then, for the Control of Western Mediterranean Sea, (a kind of Precursor of the Subsequent Terrestrial Victory of anOther United European Army against the Former Ottoman-Turkish Empire at Vienna on 1.683, Followed by Budapest's Liberation on 1.690, etc), where, according, at least, to an Experienced former Minister of Italy for EU Affairs, "Lepante was the Beginning of Modern Europe's History" !

I.e., about 420 Years Ago, while, Nowadays, the EU is Still, Notoriously, Striving, through Delays and Various Obstacles (including UK's Blockade, Before the 2019 "BREXIT"), to Build, at last, a Real, Credible and Strong, United European Security and Defense Policy... (Comp. relevant "Eurofora"s NewsReport, from an EU Summit in Brussels, at: http://www.eurofora.net/newsflashes/news/euhistoricdefenceevent.html, etc).

Nowadays, Meanwhile, EU Leaders have Notoriously "Decided to Create a Legal Framework for Sanctions on Turkey", as a Brussels' Spokesman reminded, on the occasion, Precisely, of the above-mentioned Turkish WarShips' Bullying inside EU Member States Greece and Cyprus' EEZ, for Eastern Mediterranean's Energy Resources.

Isn't it, indeed, much Preferable, Today, if not, even, an Existential Vital Need for Europe, to Prove, on the spot, that a Firm Diplomacy, Based on Crystal-clear Principles and International Law, Together, whenever Necessary, with a Credible Dissuasion Force, Can Become Able to Protect European People's Security and Development ?

Both Munich of a Notorious Past, and Nowadays' Turkish Brutal Repeated WarShips etc. Bullying (Comp. Supra), Obviously Prove that a Principled Firmness is More Able to Guarantee Peace and Prosperity, than Excessive and Prolonged Laxism...

(../..)

("Draft-News")

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