During a trip to Paris on Monday, Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias stated that Turkey cannot constantly try to blackmail Europe.
In an interview with French newspaper ‘Le Figaro’, Dendias said that Paris realized from the beginning that Turkey’s ambitions affected not only Greece and Cyprus, but all of Europe and the Mediterranean region.
The Greek Foreign Minister noted that “Turkey has dangerously escalated its provocative practices in the eastern Mediterranean”, referring to Turkey’s violations of Greek national airspace and territorial waters.
He argued that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was trying to expand his sovereignty in the eastern Mediterranean by illegal means and said that Greece’s “government will not allow this”.
Dendias also held a meeting with French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian in Paris, during which they extensively discussed Turkish activities in the Mediterranean.
The two Foreign Ministers jointly participated in the EU Council of Foreign Ministers, as well as in the video conference held between the EU Foreign Ministers and U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.
During their bilateral meeting Dendias and Le Drian discussed regional issues, as well as the progress of Greek-French relations.
