Sign up now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comSign up ISTANBUL, Sept 3 (Reuters) – Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan accused Greece on Saturday of holding islands in the Aegean Sea that have a demilitarized status and said Turkey was ready to “do whatever is necessary” when the time comes. Historical rivals, while also members of NATO, Turkey and Greece are at loggerheads over issues ranging from overflights and the status of Aegean islands to maritime borders and hydrocarbon resources in the Mediterranean, as well as ethnically divided Cyprus. Ankara recently accused Athens of arming demilitarized Aegean islands – something Athens denies, but Erdogan has not previously accused Greece of seizing them. Sign up now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comSign up “Taking the islands does not bind us. When the time comes, the time comes, we will do whatever is necessary,” Erdogan said, speaking in the northern province of Samsun. Greece responded by saying it would not follow Turkey in its “outrageous daily slide” of statements and threats. “We will inform our allies and partners of the content of the provocative statements…to make clear who is dynamiting the cohesion of our alliance at a dangerous time,” the foreign ministry said. Turkey was recently angered by what it said was harassment of its aircraft by Greek forces. Ankara said the S-300 air defense systems used by Greece had locked on to the Turkish jets during a routine flight. Turkey celebrated Victory Day on August 30, a national holiday commemorating Turkish forces ousting Greek forces in 1922. On Saturday, Erdogan also called on Greece to “not forget Smyrna,” referring to the Turkish victory. As Erdogan prepares for what is shaping up to be the biggest electoral challenge of his nearly 20-year rule in 2023, the president has played up achievements on the world stage. He has also stepped up his rhetoric on foreign policy. Ankara says the Aegean islands were given to Greece under the 1923 and 1947 Treaties on the condition that it does not arm them. Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu has repeatedly said that Turkey would begin to challenge Greek sovereignty over the islands if Athens insisted on arming them. Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said that Turkey’s position to challenge Greece’s sovereignty over the islands is “absurd”. Sign up now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.comSign up Reporting by Ali Kucukgocmen Additional reporting by George Georgiopoulos in Athens Editing by Helen Popper and Frances Kerry Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
