Greek Coast Guard ship. File photoATHENA Sep 11 The Greek Coast Guard said it fired warning fire in a safe direction while pursuing a «suspicious Comoros-flagged vessel» that had entered Greek territorial waters. Turkish authorities previously said that the incident took place in international waters, 11 miles southwest of the Turkish island of Bozcaada. Ankara demands a serious investigation into the incident.
Media: Greece tried to intercept a Turkish aircraft that was carrying out a NATO mission»On Saturday afternoon, a patrol boat from the Port Authority of Mytilini discovered in the sea area northwest of Lesbos the ANATOLIAN ro-ro ship flying the flag of the Comoros, which was moving suspiciously within national territorial waters, taking heading north of the island,» the coast guard said. «The captain of this vessel, having been instructed by the crew of a coast guard patrol boat to stop for inspection, disobeyed, moving parallel to the Turkish coast. A chase followed, during which warning shots were fired at the safe sector, however, the above vessel did not stop, entering Turkish territorial waters and moving towards the Turkish coast,» the Coast Guard said. According to them, the Coast Guard Operations Center informed the Turkish authorities about the incident so that they could take their own actions. NATO allies Greece and Turkey repeatedly but found themselves on the verge of armed conflict due to territorial disputes. A new round of tension began on August 23, when, according to the Turkish Ministry of Defense, Greece deployed Russian-made S-300 air defense systems to target Turkish F-16s during a NATO mission. Greece denies this. In recent days, the rhetoric between the two countries has sharply escalated. Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said earlier that Greece is threatening Turkey with S-300 air defense systems and will pay a «heavy price» if it «goes further.» Turkish National Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said that Ankara expects objectivity from NATO in connection with Greece's use 300 in pursuit of Turkish aircraft. According to him, Greece ignores international law, good neighborly relations and friendship. Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias sent letters to Head of European Diplomacy Josep Borrell and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg in which he announced the threat of a serious conflict with Turkey in connection with the provocative statements of Turkish politicians.
Turkish President Erdogan accused Greece of plans to destabilize the region
