On Thursday, the German newspaper ‘Bild’ claimed that German Chancellor Angela Merkel played a major role in preventing the eruption of an armed conflict between Greece and Turkey.
In recent reporting, the newspaper pointed out that ships and warplanes of the two countries were about to enter a military confrontation. This followed a decision by Ankara to send a research ship near the Greek island of Kastelorizo to explore for natural resources.
The newspaper claims that Merkel intervened at the last minute and held urgent phone calls with both Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. This lead to the parties retreating from entering into hostilities.
The call between Chancellor Merkel and President Erdogan also touched upon the crisis in Libya, the eastern Mediterranean, and bilateral issues.