Turkish, Greek navy join NATO drill in Aegean

The Turkish and Greek navies have joined a NATO maritime exercise in the eastern Mediterranean amid a visible improvement in ties between the two neighboring states who have recently been at odds over overlapping territorial claims in the Aegean and Mediterranean.

The Turkish and Greek military assets, including jetfighters and frigates, joined the NATO's Neptune Strike 23-2 military drill in the Mediterranean, the alliance said in a statement on July 18.

"A total of four ships from Greece, Türkiye and the U.K. seamlessly integrated into a defensive multi-national NATO force, whilst the fighter jets fulfilled the roles of both friendly and hostile forces," read the statement.

"This created a realistic and challenging operational scenario for the task group. The combined force of fighter jets included Hellenic Air Force F16s, Turkish Air Force F16s, and Royal Air Force Typhoons, whilst a Royal Air Force Voyager provided air-to-air refueling," added the alliance.

Greece's frigate HS Limnos, the Turkish frigates TCG Gökçeada and TCG Göksu, and the British destroyer HMS Duncan joined the drill and demonstrated their capability and interoperability, proving they are ready to defend themselves and the task group from real-world airborne threats.

"Bringing this number of military assets together to operate seamlessly is an impressive demonstration of the strength that comes from combining individual national capabilities into a far greater, integrated, and effective, multi-national force," the Commander of Standing NATO Maritime Group 2 (SNMG2), Royal Navy Commodore Paul Stroude, said.

According to the Greek media, the scenario for this military exercise has been shaped deliberately for increasing the coordination and dialogue...