Greek army chief warns of rising risk of ‘accident’ in Aegean
The chief of the Hellenic National Defense General Staff (GEETHA), Konstantinos Floros, has reiterated warnings of the mounting risk of an “accident” between Greece and Turkey if Ankara insists on raising tensions over the Aegean and Eastern Mediterranean.
In comments during a webinar organized by the American Hellenic Institute Foundation (AHIF) on Wednesday, Floros said that the potential for a military accident is “serious,” given Turkey’s recent actions in the Aegean, adding that this would have dire consequences, the GEETHA website reported.
Floros stressed the strategic importance of the Eastern Mediterranean for international players like the United States, Russia, NATO and the European Union, while underscoring Turkey’s daily violations and provocative activities, the GEETHA reported.
Floros also thanked the president of the American Hellenic Institute, Nick Larigakis, for the AHI’s ongoing contribution to the strengthening of Greek-American relations, while hailing the Greek-American Strategic Dialogue as an important step in bolstering bilateral cooperation.
On the Eastern Mediterranean, Floros underscored Greece’s continued presence in and support for multilateral cooperation agreements such as those with Cyprus, Israel, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Jordan.
Floros also referred to a recent escalation in migrant flows from Turkey across Evros and the Aegean as a result of Ankara’s “instrumentalization” of the crisis.
