ATHENS: Greece’s coast guard denied accusations by the Turkish defence ministry on Monday (Jul 22) that it had pushed again migrants off the island of Lesbos into Turkish territory.
Earlier, Türkiye’s defence ministry uploaded a drone video on plaftform X displaying a Greek coast guard operation, including a Greek vessel pushes a ship carrying migrants off the north of Lesbos island and into Turkish territorial waters.
“Our coast guard command was instantly knowledgeable and the immigrants in query have been rescued by the coast guard boat that arrived within the space,” the Turkish Defence Ministry stated on X.
A senior Greek coast guard official responded that: “That is by no means a pushback, it’s detection and prevention of unlawful entry into Greek territorial waters.”
Greece, one of many gateways into the European Union for refugees and migrants from the Center East, Asia and Africa, has been accused by help teams of forcibly ejecting migrants at its sea and land borders, also referred to as “pushbacks,” an unlawful observe.
Greece and Türkiye, NATO allies, have lengthy been at odds over points together with the place their continental cabinets begin and finish, power sources, flights over the Aegean Sea, and the ethnically partitioned island of Cyprus.
The most recent incident comes two days after the fiftieth anniversary of Türkiye’s invasion of a part of the island after a quick Greek-inspired coup.
Greek Cypriots need reunification as a federation. Turkish Cypriots need a two-state settlement.
The state of affairs stays an emotional set off for each international locations, irritating Ankara’s ambitions of becoming a member of the European Union, and hindering power potential within the east Mediterranean due to overlapping claims.
In 2023, the 2 neighbours agreed to revamp their relationship, establishing a roadmap to usher in a brand new period of nearer ties.