“We are aware of these hostile remarks of the political leadership of Turkey against Greece and the Greek people are source of concern, they raise really serious concern. The position of the EU has been and remains very clear, we expect Turkey to refrain from escalatory rhetoric and engage in promoting good neighborly relations not the opposite,” Stano said, according to Sputnik News Agency.
The spokesperson also urged both Ankara and Athens to address bilateral issues in a peaceful dialogue, which would abide by international law and customs of good neighboring.
On September 3, Erdogan, referring to the Greek S-300 air defense systems allegedly tracking Turkish jets over Aegean Sea, warned that Greece would pay a “heavy price” if the incidents with Turkish planes continue.
Turkish media reported on Sunday, citing sources in the country’s defense ministry, that Greece had deployed an S-300 air defense system to track the F-16 fighters of the Turkish air forces performing a reconnaissance mission west of Rhodes Island at the altitude of 10,000 feet on August 23.
Sources in the Greek Defense Ministry categorically denied Ankara's claims that Athens deployed its S-300 system in Crete against Turkey's F-16s, describing the statements as myths aimed at creating a hostile attitude toward Greece.
The relations between Athens and Ankara have been complicated for decades. The countries were on the verge of an armed conflict three times in the summer of 2020. Greece had to mobilize its armed forces after Turkey launched a seismic survey in the Eastern Mediterranean, the area that Athens considers its exclusive economic zone.
MNA/PR
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