“Tomorrow we will say goodbye to our new 4th drilling rig Abdul Hamit Khan from Tasutsu port in Mersin. Until today, in our maritime jurisdiction, we have not allowed any plans or actions to be carried out without us and will not allow,” Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said.

It is expected that the ceremony of launching the floating drilling rig “Abdul Hamid Khan” will take place tomorrow, August 9, at 13:30.

Earlier today, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu launched a new attack against Greece.

“An important factor in our policy in Eastern Mediterranean these are our sovereign rights. The duet of Greece and Greek Cypriots tried to send 9 ships to our continental shelf. We have prevented this by the measures we have taken both at the front and at the table. Tomorrow, the Abdul Hamit ship will set off for its first combat operations in the Mediterranean,” said Mr. Cavusoglu.

The Turkish Foreign Minister once again touched upon the issue of the militarization of the Greek islands. “In the Aegean, we want interrelated issues to be dealt with holistically and dealt with comprehensively, permanently and in accordance with international law. However, Greece cannot muster the will to solve problems. Whoever has a habit does not give it up… We spoke and explained to our interlocutors, especially at the UN, that the islands that are off our coasts and have a demilitarized status in accordance with international treaties are now militarized. We will continue to deal with this issue, which is of crucial importance for the security of our country,” he said.

On relations with the EU – Turkey, Mevlut Cavusoglu stressed that “it is not right for the EU to be a hostage and give itself up to the fruitless interests of some of its members in the light of solidarity, and this is being done against Turkey, which is a candidate for EU membership.” and a member of NATO. He also stressed that “the relations between the EU and Turkey are so strategic that they cannot be reduced to the level of personal interests and narrow-minded positions of one or two EU members.” Security is like breathing. You realize its value when you miss it. That is why the security of Europe needs Turkey. And Turkey is obliged to contribute to the security of the continent on which it is located. Because Turkey is Europe. As a European power, at a difficult time for Europe, we again attach importance to Europe.”