Ro, Greece

A ruling Justice and Development (AKP) deputy has warned Greece over a fresh rift over the Kardak islets, saying Turkey would shoot at the country if they "played any games."

Turkey and Greece have become embroiled in a fresh rift over the Kardak islets in the Aegean Sea, which are claimed by both countries, and which almost led the two sides to war 21 years ago.

Only a few hours after the visit of Greek Defence Minster Panos Kammenos flew over the isles of Imia in the eastern Aegean Sea, Wednesday to commemorate the 1996 crisis, and the response by Turkey by dispatching F-16 fighter jets in multiple violations of Greek air space, Turkey is continuing to raise tensions.

Defense Minister Panos Kammenos and military chiefs on Wednesday flew by a military helicopter over the eastern Aegean Imia islets, the site of a military standoff with Turkey in 1996, to drop wreaths in memory of three Hellenic Navy officers who died when their helicopter crashed during a reconnaissance mission in the area.

Greece has criticized the Jan. 29 visit of Turkey's top brass to the Aegean islets of Kardak, which is claimed by both countries, describing it as a "serious violation."

In a stern statement late Thursday, Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesman Huseyin Muftuoglu offered Ankara's first official response to an initiative by Greece's Deputy Shipping Minister Nektarios Santorinios for economic development on 28 uninhabited Aegean islets.

The Greek government is taking steps to populate a number of small islets in the eastern Aegean in a bid to fend off territorial claims by Ankara in the region, Kathimerini understands.

A Turkish cargo ship ran aground on a tiny rocky island in the Aegean Sea in December 1995. But a dispute between Turkey and Greece over who owned the island sovereignty almost brought the two nations to war. Agreement still hasn’t been reached over the territory called Kardak by the Turks and Imia by the Greeks.

A Turkish military transport plane on Tuesday morning descended to an altitude of just 110 feet over a Greek island in the eastern Aegean in a second day of overflights.

The Turkish CN235 was captured on Greek radars flying some 30 meters above the islet of Panagia, which is part of the Oinousses island cluster east of Chios.

Turkey’s bellicose stance towards Greece on the status quo of islands in the Aegean Sea is not something that has emerged out of the blue. The adoption of of a well planned policy that disputes the sovereignty of Greece over a series of islands and island rocks in the Aegean Sea began after the two countries came close to a military conflict in 1996 over the rock island of Imia.