So... average day in Greek politics.

I’m familiar with the usual pattern in Greek politics—politicians often try to win votes with anti-Turkish rhetoric as elections near. But this feels different; there seems to be a buildup.

Rearmament claims are dime-a-dozen nowadays. Tons of European countries are trying to rebuild their arms industries in light of the Russian invasion, and due to the idiot in the White House blowing up transatlantic relations and shattering the assumption that we'll have US backing. Especially countries on the Eastern flank like Greece are trying to hedge their bets. That's all this is.

I’m aware of the rearmament. Additional information: Turkey has been building up its military since 1974. Up until that time, Turkey’s emphasis on domestic production increased after it was abandoned by the U.S. in Cyprus. Nearly 20 years of preparation were made in order to carry out the landing operation.

Greece does not have a defense industry, and they cannot build one either. They lack the population. They lack the systems. The backbone of their economy is tourism. They receive substantial support from the European Union, which I have no issue with. However, while doing so, their very close relations with Israel and the fact that think-tank organizations target Turkey are significant. Dendias simply admitted it. He said, “We will attack from the Eastern Mediterranean, from the south, from everywhere.” So, which countries are present in that region? While doing this, they also continuously try to draw other countries into it and pursue an aggressive alliance against Turkey, led primarily by France.

Only according to Turkey. Most of the rest of the globe is a party to the UNCLOS, which Greece uses for its claim. Y'all are in the minority here. And this coming from a self-admitted skeptic of international law, mind you.

Almost all countries are parties to UNCLOS. Under UNCLOS, countries’ territorial waters were extended to 12 miles. Turkey had previously made a mistake by accepting a 6-mile limit. If it were extended to 12 miles, a Turkish ship would not be able to travel from Istanbul to Antalya. As a precaution, in 1995 Turkey declared casus belli against Greece. Greece only understands strength; if we did not threaten them with war, they would try to defend the 12-mile claim more aggressively. Turkey did not tear up an existing agreement; it blocked one that did not exist.

They are merely acting like you: pursuing their own interests. Which here would be "having enough of a force multiplier to keep Turkey out" and "gain access to an extra source of natural gas".

I disagree with you on this issue. If they were acting in the country’s best interest, they would understand Greece’s limits of power and act accordingly. They are over-militarizing and harming their economy, but since they do not produce those weapons themselves, they would not be able to replace them in a war, meaning they would be defeated with the weapons they already have. I hope a war does not break out; I know that neither the Greek people nor the Turkish people want war.

The what now? The Patriarchate you mean?

An independent Orthodox structure in Istanbul, just like the Vatican.

Wild leap of logic there. Then again, assuming Greece is merely a puppet instead of having its own agency and interests is conductive to this framing. But I'll say it again: Greece got no real reason to invade again, this is merely a historical ghost and grievance that neither side wants to lay to rest.

Actually, I was making a historical reference here. The British started the war in France during World War II and used the French as a land army. At Gallipoli, they sent French ships to the front lines. In 1919, they used Greece as an army against the Turkish national movement. Of course, the Greeks also opportunistically jumped into an endeavor they could not handle. There were generals in the Greek army who were against this. Metaxas, who said, “You think they are dead, but they will rise in front of you,” was not listened to.

And why'd Bennett say this? A mix of pre-election rhetoric (where politicians have to look tough, especially Bennett, who is trying to lure disillusioned Likudniks to vote for him in October) and geopolitical realities like Turkey acting hostile. However, unlike Iran, Turkey isn't arming hostile terrorist groups, so this can be salvaged if either A) Turkey kicked Hamas' leadership out (ideally, cause fuck the bastards), or 😎 either Turkey or Israel shut up about each other for a bit, be it the politicos or the media - if the news cycle shuts up, things will ease somewhat and allow diplomats to soothe egos.

Both countries are just reacting to each other, feeding a self-reinforcing loop. Break it, and things will cool quickly.

For example, there are statements attributed to the FBI director about the U.S. having created ISIS, but they are not taken seriously. Who armed whom is not really important. Iran, in pursuit of creating a Shia crescent in Syria, carried out numerous massacres and damaged its economy. Israel supported the PKK. There is not much difference. Both sides have carried out many terrorist attacks in Turkey. Especially in the 1990s, Iranian organizations were very active. Fortunately, we defeated them.

I understood that you were writing what you think rather than expressing emotion, but I realized you may not have actually seen the “Is TURKEY NEW IRAN?” headlines in the Israeli media.

.. what? Wild assumptions to make, especially as I said nothing of the sort. It's a wild leap to go from "geopolitical disagreement" to "you support us being genocided", is it not?

While writing this, I mistakenly interpreted the illegality in maritime areas as Cyprus; that was my mistake. It was actually related to the Cyprus intervention. By the way, if Northern Cyprus falls, it could become a major weapons buildup area, and the American military would not hesitate to establish such a buildup. There is already a significant U.S. military buildup in Western Thrace at the moment. If we lose Northern Cyprus, we will not be able to sleep peacefully in Ankara, Istanbul, Antalya, Izmir, or Trabzon. Years before the island was taken, in the 1920s, Atatürk gathered our statesmen and said: “Gentlemen, pay attention to this island. All our supply routes pass through it.”

If we lose Cyprus, we would be surrounded from three sides. We have not lost a war for 100 years. If such a war were to break out, my personal concern is that the conflict with Israel would take the form of an air war. I am also worried that unless the Turkish flag were to fly in Tel Aviv, there could be a perception of defeat against Israel within the Turkish nation. I hope that the peace established in the Balkans after the Bosnian crisis continues.