Amidst Ankara’s continual threats of war against Greece, US envoy keeps equal distances

US Ambassador to Ankara Jeff Flake issued a statement today indicating that Washington’s stance toward Turkey has not changed.

In his remark, posted on the Instagram account “US Embassy, Ankara TURKEY”, Flake reiterated the decades-old stance of the US, which is keeping equal distances from Greece and Turkey, despite the fact that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the last months months been threatening Greece with war and a Turkish occupation of a Greek island.

Flake is a Republican former US Senator from Arizona who staunchly supported President Joe Biden against Donald Trump in the 2020 elections.

Washington’s delicate balance

Over many decades, NATO has maintained precisely the same approach.

With the backdrop of the raging Russo-Ukrainian war, Washington has been forced to strike a delicate balance between its two old NATO allies, in order to avoid dangerous fissures and divisions in the Alliance at a critical juncture.

Change in US posture toward Ankara? ‘The answer is no’

In his post, Flake wrote that he was asked if the stance of the US toward Turkey has changed and that he said that, “The answer is no.”

“Our security cooperation with our NATO Allies  Türkiye and Greece does not come from a position of partiality or imbalance toward a single partner,” Flake stated.

Erdogan’s use of Greece to pressure US

The post was clearly a response to Erdogan’s repeated furious charges over the last weeks that the US is using Greece as a pawn to undermine Turkey’s interests.

On the other hand, many international analysts have viewed Erdogan’s attacks and bellicose stance toward Greece as leverage to pressure Washington to close Ankara’s F-16 fighter jets procurement deal without the limits, included in a Senate amendment drafted by Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Robert Menendez, a staunch critic of Turkey, on how they are used (for example that flights over Greek territory would be banned.

Ankara rejected the conditions and the deal is done now.

NATO focused on defeating Russia, Ankara’s mediation useful

“Our collective efforts are now focused on putting an end to Russia’s brutal and unprovoked war in Ukraine.   Türkiye continues to provide valuable support, notably advancing food security and fostering dialogue between Ukraine and Russia,” Flake stated.

“Our defense cooperation with Greece strengthens NATO’s eastern flank in support of Ukraine and of our NATO allies in Central and Eastern Europe. Our overriding objective, shared with our NATO allies  Türkiye and Greece is peace, security, and stability throughout the region,” the US envoy concluded.