As European Council on Foreign Relations discusses sanctions against Turkey, Ankara takes even yet one more provocative action.
Turkey has issued a new NAVTEX according to which the illegal surveys of the Oruc Reis are extended until September 1st in new areas that include the Greek continental shelf.
The Turkish Defence Minister Hulusi Akar a few hours before had declared that the surveys will practically not stop until all the area they consider to be Turkish has been mapped.
The first NAVTEX issued by the Turks expired at midnight on Sunday, which has been extended until today.
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In the meantime, a three-hour exercise involving two French Rafale fighter jets stationed at the Andreas Papandreou Base in Paphos, Cyprus, a pair of Greek F-16s that landed yesterday at the Paphos Airforce base in Cyprus and six more Greek fighter jets that took off from Crete for today’s exercise and flew to Cyprus took place earlier today.
The three-hour air exercise was supervised by the Greek Joint General Chief of Staff, General Konstantinos Floros, who was at the National Operations Center at the Ministry of National Defense.
However, during the return of the six Air Force fighter jets back to Crete, Turkish fighter jets attempted to harass the Greek F-16s. According to reliable information, the Greek side was ready to face the Turkish provocation. A number of Greek fighter jets that had also taken off from Kastelli, Crete, engaged in mock dog fights with the Turkish jets, allowing the F-16 Block-52+ pilots -who had already completed more than two hours of continuous flight- to land safely on the 115th Battle Wing as planned.
