Turkish forces could possibly become involved in accidental actions against Greece, Turkish Minister of Foreign Affairs Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu warned, asking Athens to restrain its defense minister, Panos Kammenos, and referring to him as their “spoiled brat.”
Speaking at the Turkish Gendarmerie and Coast Guard Academy, Çavuşoğlu touched on disputes between Turkey and Greece in the Aegean Sea and eastern Mediterranean. He urged Athens to refrain from steps that would escalate tensions in the region.
“We will not allow faits accomplis in the Aegean,” he vowed, stressing that Turkish coast guard and naval forces were authorized to take necessary action. He was referring to a 1995 declaration of the Turkish parliament that had authorized action, not excluding military action, to safeguard Turkish interests.
“And we have a warning for Greece. You have a spoiled brat. That’s what they call their defense minister. Watch your spoiled brat so that our security forces do not get involved in possible accidents. This is a totally friendly warning. Rhetoric heightening the tensions or actions taken out of the blue such as trying to land on a rocky islet will not earn you anything,” Çavuşoğlu said.