With a map, starting from … 1832, the Minister of Defense of Turkey, Hulusi Akarundertook new provocations against Greece, accusing her of expansionism and aggression.

“They have reached right in front of our noses,” Akar said, accusing Athens that its own claims and alliances with foreign countries are causing tensions in the region to escalate and that the theory of neo-Ottomanism is a Greek fiction.

MSB HULUSİ AKAR: “Some politicians in Yunanistan act provocatively, saying things in a more provocative way, devam ettiriyorlar according to personal emails. Cunci orada iç siyasette Türkiye’ye karşık eylem ve sözlem güya bollaya bir bir teyarorlar, they think about it.”#high bit #HulusiAkar pic.twitter.com/WecJujVmrN

— TC Millî Savunma Bakanlığı (@tcsavunma) August 11, 2022

Link to disaster in Asia Minor

Initially, the Turkish Defense Minister returned to the speech of Kyriakos Mitsotakis in Congress, showing that this issue still worries Ankara. He even accused the prime minister of “immoral behavior”.

“Our president welcomed their prime minister for a talk. We talked and agreed. While we are two neighboring countries, soon after that he went to the US Congress and blamed Turkey. He took an unethical stance that is inconsistent with diplomacy and good neighborly relations,” Akar said during an appearance on a TV show that lasted almost an hour and a half.

And he continued, showing obvious irritation with the internationalization campaign of Turkish provocations from Athens: “Now they continue to tour. They went to the USA and said: “Don’t give Turkey planes.” They went to Germany and said “don’t give the submarines to Turkey”.

At that moment, the Turkish minister also recalled the catastrophe in Asia Minor: “The Greeks must not forget the price they paid for their adventure a century ago. We must learn from history and not pursue new adventures that will lead to disappointment.”

MILLO SAVUNMA BAKANI HULUSI AKAR: “Yunan muhataplarimiz? bir asır önce gurishilen maceranın bedelinin ne kadar aci ığının, 6 adminisinin idamla cezalandırıldını asla untumamali. Tarihten ders almalı ve hüsranla resultanlanak yeni maceraların peşinde must not be performed.” pic.twitter.com/kth9dtSIhc

— TC Millî Savunma Bakanlığı (@tcsavunma) August 11, 2022

Complex cards

Then, after outlining the Turkish agenda, Hulusi Akar launched an unprecedented attack on Greece.

In particular, stating that the Turkish side is protecting its rights in the Aegean Sea and the Eastern Mediterranean, as well as the rights of the Turkish Cypriots, he noted:

“However, we say: you have 3,000 islands in the Aegean Sea, and you are walking in front of us, you claim a maritime area of ​​​​responsibility of 40,000 square kilometers, you are the one who ignores our rights just like those Turkish Cypriots in the Southern Mediterranean, you arm yourself with a perceived threat and run for alliances, you open your gates to third countries,” he stressed.

In fact, at this point, Akar showed two maps of the Aegean region and the Eastern Mediterranean in response to Greek maps of Turkish provocations since 1974. One of the maps he showed started from … 1832.

“So we are expansionists and aggressive? Everyone laughs at this. There is reality here. Since 1832 they have been expanding their territory. From 1832 to 1947 it expanded and reached right in front of our noses. What is an expansionist? – said the Turkish Defense Minister, and a corresponding map appeared next to him.

Finally, Akar argued that the Greek side accuses Turkey of expansionism and that it is Turkey that has now put forward the theory of neo-Ottomanism.

“All this is not true. It should be seen by third parties. And we all talk about it at our meetings, we explain it and we will mention it all the time,” he concluded.