Editorial Ta Nea: Crisis

In an address to the members of his AK Party in the Turkish Grand National Assembly Recep Tayyip Erdogan maintained that Greece has begun to accept the regime that Ankara has imposed in the Mediterranean.

He reportedly declared that developments in Syria and Libya will further heat up the waters of the Mediterranean.

Provocative statements from Ankara certainly stir concerns and Turkey in the 21^st century appears to be adopting an ever more aggressive stance toward its neighbours.

Erdogan’s brand of rhetoric and that of a large segment of the Turkish opposition are the rule and not an exception and Greece is obliged to adapt to that.

At the same time one must not forget that rhetoric that appears to target a foreign audience in fact is often intended for domestic consumption.

Turkey has many serious problems ranging from the economy to human rights.

Erdogan has established an authoritarian regime which as all such regimes is afraid of its own shadow.

Meanwhile, the political system remains deeply divided.

Hence, Turkey is attempting to export its domestic crisis, with which all the sabre-rattling of the Turkish leadership is linked.

That is why the Greek government quite rightly decided to simply underline that Ankara’s illegal actions cannot be legitimised.