Turkish aeroplanes and helicopters illegally entered Greece’s airspace 141 times yesterday (15 May), the Hellenic National Defence General Staff reported.
In all cases, Turkish aircraft were identified and intercepted by Greek fighters, while in nine cases the interception process resulted in near combat situations.
In addition, two Turkish missile boats entered Greek territorial waters off the southeast Aegean island of Agathonisi.
The vessels, which were taking part in a maritime exercise code-named Denizkurdu (Seawolf), stayed in Greek territorial waters for about 20 minutes.
Commission: Turkey must respect EU member states’ sovereignty Ankara must respect the sovereignty of EU member states over their territorial sea and airspace, European Commission spokesperson Maja Kocijancic told EURACTIV.com.
Contacted by EURACTIV.com, an EU spokesperson sent a strict message to Turkey, urging that it respect the sovereignty of the EU’s member states.
“Moreover, the EU also stresses the need to respect the sovereignty of member states over their territorial sea and airspace,” the spokesperson told EURACTIV. »