NEWS

Athens responds to latest comments by Turkish FM

Athens responds to latest comments by Turkish FM

Athens on Wednesday responded to fresh claims by Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu that the sovereignty of certain Greek islands and islets “is not clear” and dismissing last weekend’s incident over the eastern Aegean.

“The provocative violations of our sovereignty in the air or at sea are not legitimized because they occur repeatedly or are endowed with the description ‘routine’,” Greek Foreign Ministry spokesman Alexandros Gennimatas said in comments to the press on Wednesday.

Gennimatas’ response came hours after Cavusoglu said in an interview with Turkey’s TV 100 that “there are islands and islets [in the Aegean] whose sovereignty is not clear.”

He also reiterated claims that two Turkish jets which harassed a Greek helicopter carrying Greek Defense Minister Nikolaos Panagiotopoulos and the chief of the National Defense General Staff, General Konstantinos Floros during visits to the islands of Oinousses, Agathonissi and Farmakonissi on Sunday, were conducting “routine flights” in the area.

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