Unclear signals are transmitted during this period from Anchorbecause, despite the ongoing unofficial moratorium, steps are being taken that are being monitored and analyzed with interest from Athens. Despite the positive assessment that Turkish Naval Schools that started yesterday (and to knowledge “K”) are limited Eastern Mediterraneancauses skepticism n obligation in the central Aegean – between Skyros and Chios – for exercises from 5 to 26 June.

In particular, Turkish Armed Forces (TED) and especially the navy began to conduct some training activities in the Eastern Mediterranean.

Although the activity is still limited to the area east of Rhodes and northwest of Cyprus, i.e. exclusively in international waters, it is believed that the Turkish Navy, in fact, used a limited version of the Thalassolikos-23 (Deniz Kurdu). It is recalled that Ankara did not single out a single area in the Aegean Sea, in fact cancellation of “Thalassolikos ’23”which was planned to be held in two stages (June 1-4 and June 6-12) and completed by June 15 and the start of the official moratorium in the Aegean, based on Memorandum Papulia – Yilmaz.

It remains to be seen if the live-fire exercise announced through NOTAM will continue.

The feasibility of issuing an aviation directive (NOTAM No. A 3549/23), by which Ankara announced the “obligation” of the exercise area within the Athens FIR, namely in the area coinciding with international airspace for the period from 5 to 26 June, is also being studied. His strength BUT THERE (which Greece canceled with its NOTAM) of course also applies to the period coinciding with the Papoulia-Yılmaz memorandum.

This particular area has been repeatedly occupied by the Turkish authorities in the past and is one of the arguments used by the neighboring country’s diplomacy to refute Greece’s fixed position on air traffic control and competence in the Aegean. In this general context, in the past few years, Turkey has also declared – by mistake – also several test sites in the Aegean Sea, in areas that coincide with international waters and international airspace.

It is worth noting that, in fact, there is no question of the authority of air traffic, despite the attempts of the Turks to question even the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) the fact that the Aegean is controlled by the Greek authorities. . In any case, it is assumed that the NOTAM question is about a simple reminder on the part of the Turks Ankara’s claims in this section. Whether the live-fire exercises announced through NOTAM will take place will be known next Tuesday when they go into effect.

However, it is worth noting that from February 6 to today, according to GHETHA, violations of national airspace and violations of air traffic rules were committed by a total of five aircraft. Recall that until February 6, violations were committed almost every day by five aircraft. This means that in the event of exercises in the area reserved from June 5 to June 26 by Turkish aviation, calm over the Aegean Sea will be interrupted.

In Athens, of course, all these movements are monitored, and at the diplomatic level, it is expected that during this period and after the elections, gradual attempts will be made to restart the Greek-Turkish relations through both existing and new channels.