The serious incident that occurred on 22 February, in the maritime area between the islands of Oinousses and Chios, between a Turkish fishing boat that violated Greek territorial waters and a Hellenic Coast Guard ship, did not surprise anyone who has closely observed the recent escalation of Turkish provocations.

Consequently, Greek authorities are carefully examining the prospect of an organised Turkish provocation.

Such a possibility cannot be ruled out given the fact that Ankara is now even disputing [Greece’s sovereignty over] certain Eastern Aegean islands, while the Turkish Coast Guard is disseminating false “information” that a Turkish fisherman purportedly was injured and that this constituted a “crime against humanity”.

Ankara has often opted for sensationalist actions in the Aegean, which it then exploits and incorporates in its communication strategy, with pompous pronouncements.

Our experience with Turkey’s way of thinking and acting makes it necessary for Greece to at once exhibit calm and decisiveness.

If the Turkish side, as is its wont, is planning more provocations in the near future, Greece is obliged to be ready to confront them.

We should not get carried away, but at the same time we must not allow our calm and composure to be misconstrued as weakness.

This requires delicate balances, but our country is on the right side of history, in the camp of those who swear by the rules of international law.

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