Tsipras, Merkel discuss Turkey as Cavusoglu comments spur Kammenos tirade

As Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras discussed the refugee crisis and EU-Turkish relations with German Chancellor Angela Merkel in a scheduled phone conversation on Thursday, Ankara ratcheted up the rhetoric, with its Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu claiming that the "Imia islets are Turkish land."

His remarks drew a stern response from the Greek Foreign Ministry, which described them as "irresponsible and provocative."

"Turkey's escalating rhetoric" was also discussed during the conversation between, Tsipras and Merkel, the premier's office said in a statement.

A dispute over Greece's Imia islets in the eastern Aegean almost led to a war between the two countries in 1996. "Greece's sovereignty over its islands in the Aegean, including Imia, is indisputable and enshrined in international law," the Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

Defense Minister Panos...