Christodoulos (Charles) Ellinas in statements to CNA, basing his assessment on Turkey’s reactions in recent days, noting that “it appears Turkey is proceeding cautiously.”
“I am somewhat optimistic that the surveys will proceed with some reaction from Turkey, but not to the extent that it would cause major problems,” he emphasized.
ΣΧΕΤΙΚΑ ΑΡΘΡΑ
Specifically, noting that it is interesting to see how the two sides are responding, Mr. Ellinas said that “Greece ultimately went ahead with issuing the Navtex, which it had to do, and at the same time says that exploration will begin now, perhaps next week.”
“Turkey’s reaction has been measured to a certain extent, even though it did what we expected—namely, it issued an Anti-Navtex and sent drones over the area,” he added.
He noted that Turkey “does not appear to be reacting strongly,” and according to media reports, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said that everything is going well and that he believes the issue has been resolved.
SEE ALSO: “Turkey’s internal management is none of our business”: Athens’ response to Fidan’s “everything is fine” regarding the NAVTEX
Mr. Ellinas said, “We don’t know exactly what [Mr. Fidan] meant, but it appears that Turkey is proceeding cautiously.”
It seems to me that the diplomatic contacts behind the scenes over the past two weeks have yielded some sort of solution, he added.
He expressed the view that the Turkish reaction would be limited, noting at the same time that Turkey will not back down—nor can it back down due to domestic public opinion in Turkey —because it has made so many statements to Turkish citizens on the issue and has “taken strong positions that would be very difficult to back down from.”
“They are reacting, but only to a limited extent, and that is why I view the issue with some optimism,” he said, adding that “you can’t know for sure” and that the situation will become clearer next week.
Mr. Ellinas said that “what we’ve been seeing over the past two days is interesting” following the issuance of the Navtex and noted that “Greece, for its part, has also taken cautious actions and made careful statements, without making a big deal out of the issue.
“It wasn’t publicized, and the Greek Prime Minister said that we will keep a low profile and move forward when the time is right,” he added.
According to Mr. Ellinas, the right time appears to be now, because the surveys must be completed by the end of the year.
By issuing the Navtex now and beginning next week, they will have ample time to complete the surveys before the end of the year, he added.
He noted that the last time the ship attempted to conduct surveys, Turkey did not intervene, but simply sent frigates to the vicinity, and Greece considered the action dangerous and withdrew.
“Now, however, it appears that the surveys will proceed,” and if they proceed without interference or obstruction, “it will be a significant development,” he added.
When asked if he expects Turkey to react on the ground, Mr. Ellinas said he does not foresee such a reaction based on the developments of the past few days and added that he is quite optimistic.
“I don’t see it. I see Turkey’s actions and statements over the past two days as being intended primarily for domestic consumption, but at the same time, they do not seem to be causing Greece or others to worry enough to stop them from moving forward,” he said, adding that to be certain, one must wait and see what happens.
Source: KYPE
