Greece never tires of causing trouble in the Aegean

Greece continues its aggressive policies against Turkey, emboldened by its transformation into what is effectively an open US military base. 

We know that Greece, which also enjoys the comfort of being Europe's spoiled child, either does not comply with agreements, complies only with the articles it chooses, or interprets the articles it chooses as it pleases. Therefore, all the problems between Turkey and Greece originate from Greece.

For example, Greece increased its territorial waters in the Aegean Sea, which were set at 3 miles by the Treaty of Lausanne on July 24, 1923, to 6 miles in 1936. Turkey did not take a reciprocal step against this decision by Greece, did not refrain from good neighborly relations, and only increased its own territorial waters to 6 miles exactly 28 years later, in 1964. Instead of appreciating this stance by Turkey, Greece has been calculating for years how to extend its territorial waters to 12 miles. Against Turkey, which has declared that it would consider such a move a cause for war (casus belli), Greece is mobilizing Western states to demand that Turkey withdraw this decision. 

For example, Greece increased its airspace from 3 miles to 10 miles in 1931, which caused new problems in relations. However, according to both the 1944 Chicago Convention and the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, a country's airspace is equal to the width of its territorial waters and is the area above those waters. According to this decision by Greece, however, its airspace is 4 miles wider than its territorial waters. With this decision, Greece is trying to prevent Turkish aircraft from flying in the skies of the Aegean Sea.  

For example, Greece claims that each of the Greek islands in the Aegean Sea, also known as the Sea of Islands, has its own territorial waters. As is known, maritime jurisdiction areas (territorial waters, continental shelf, and exclusive economic zone) are very important in every respect. If territorial waters in the Aegean Sea are extended to 12 miles, Turkish territorial waters would increase by 1 unit, while Greek territorial waters would increase by 23 units. In addition, the territorial waters of geographical formations such as islands, islets, and rocks would increase by 5 units. Thus, the ratio of high seas in the Aegean Sea would drop from roughly 50 percent to below 20 percent. This would be to the detriment of not only Turkey but also all states trading in the Aegean Sea. 

For example, in recent years, taking advantage of the government's lack of response, Greece has occupied more than 20 islands, islets, and rocks belonging to Turkey. It has planted flags there, stationed soldiers, and placed anti-aircraft guns and artillery. Greek municipalities manage the settlements. Yet, these occupied islands are within the provincial borders of İzmir, Aydın, and Muğla, and are under the jurisdiction and responsibility of the governors of these provinces. In this way, Greece has effectively extended its territorial waters to 12 miles. 

Retired Staff Colonel Ümit Yalım, former Secretary General of the Ministry of National Defense, who is the closest follower of the occupied islands, islets, and rocks, stated in an interview with Nurzen Amuran (odatv, 18.01.2018, "If this situation is noticed, the AKP will hit the barrier") that the occupation of the islands was revealed when a Greek helicopter violated Turkish airspace on December 31, 2008, and continued as follows: 

"We called the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to a meeting to end the occupation. At the meeting held at the General Staff Headquarters at the beginning of 2009, we demanded that the islands be evacuated. It emerged at the meeting that the islands were occupied with the knowledge of the AKP government. The then-Minister of Foreign Affairs, Abdullah Gül, did not answer the parliamentary question submitted by CHP Deputy Onur Öymen on November 26, 2004, stating that a Greek flag had been hoisted on our islands. Thus, it was revealed that the occupation began in 2004."

According to the information provided by Ümit Yalım, Byzantine flags are also waving alongside Greek flags on the occupied islands. Greek politicians and soldiers, led by the Greek president and defense minister, are engaging in displays of sovereignty and flags. Greece is opening these islands to tourism, collecting taxes on the islands, opening schools, and conducting exercises. Since there are also natural gas and oil deposits around these islands, Turkey's economic rights are being lost alongside its sovereign rights. 

For example, Turkey wants to resolve the continental shelf issue with Greece through bilateral talks in line with the principle of equitable sharing in the Aegean Sea. Greece, on the other hand, views the continental shelf issue very differently and handles it as the delimitation of the continental shelf between the Eastern Aegean islands and Anatolia. It has been arming the Eastern Aegean islands since the 1960s. The notes and protests issued by Turkey on this matter have not been effective. However, the legal status of the Eastern Aegean islands was determined by the 1923 Treaty of Lausanne, the 1932 Turkish-Italian Convention, and the 1947 Paris Treaty. 

For example, while Greece wants to align the limit of search and rescue activities in the Aegean Sea with the FIR zone (flight information region), Turkey is in favor of resolving the disagreement on this issue through negotiations. 

The policy pursued by Greece, which always keeps anti-Turkey policies on the agenda in its domestic politics across a wide spectrum ranging from nationalists to social democrats, with the great support of the church, and by taking both the US and the EU behind it, forms the basis of the problems in the Aegean Sea.