Greece slams Turkey of “North-Korean style” attitudes

Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias said Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s threatening his country with a missile attack is unacceptable and “utterly” condemnable.

“North-Korean style attitudes cannot and must not be allowed to enter into the North Atlantic Alliance,” Dendias said upon arrival at a EU meeting in Brussels on Monday.

Threatening Greece with a missile attack by a NATO ally is both unacceptable and utterly condemnable. North Korean-style attitudes cannot and must not be allowed to enter into the North Atlantic Alliance. (statement upon arrival at the #EU #FAC). pic.twitter.com/OJwHxnFqZU

— Nikos Dendias (@NikosDendias) December 12, 2022

Erdogan on Sunday said Ankara would strike Athens unless it “stays calm”.

“If you [Greece] don’t stay calm, if you provoke, if you try to buy something from the United States for the Greek islands, a country like Turkey will not wait,” Erdogan said.

In comments over Erdogan’s remarks, the US State Department on Monday said they regret this escalation of "provocative" statements.

The US State Department spokesperson Ned Price urged all NATO allies to avoid threats and provocative rhetoric, at a time when unity and cooperation is needed the most.

The tensions between Turkey and Greece who have long been at odds over a string of issues, have build up lately over the status of the Aegean islands, where Ankara blames Athens for “illegally” militarizing its islands in violation of international treaties.

Turkey says the 1923 Treaty of Lausanne and the 1947 Treaty of Paris require Greece’s eastern Aegean islands to remain demilitarized. Greece says the restrictions no longer apply.