The Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement clarifying that “Greece will not accept any blackmail”, referring to the Turkish NAVTEX regarding Rhodes and Kastelorizo immediately after the meeting of the Government Council for Foreign Affairs and Defence (KYSEA) on Monday.

“The new illegal Turkish Navtex for illegal investigations south of the island of Megisti on the Greek continental shelf, in combination with the observed large-scale mobility of units of the Turkish navy, is a new serious escalation and demonstrates in the most blatant manner Turkey’s threatening and destabilising role to peace”, the Foreign Ministry emphasised.

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“It comes at a time when Greece has demonstrated its commitment to international legitimacy. Based solely on international law, international law of the sea, and good neighbourly rules, it has reached an agreement after negotiations with neighbouring countries. The demarcation of its Exclusive Economic Zone. It has declared its readiness for dialogue, in order to proceed with corresponding demarcations with its other neighbors based on the International Law of the Sea”.

“On the contrary, Turkey proves in practice that statements of readiness for dialogue are a sham. Citing the signing of a perfectly legal Greece-Egypt EEZ Agreement, it abandons dialogue before it even begins and resorts to long-gone practices of the past adopting the dead-end tactic of trying to create fait accompli.”

The statement concludes “Greece will not accept any blackmail. It will defend its sovereignty and sovereign rights. We call on Turkey to immediately end its illegal actions that undermine peace and security in the region.”