New provocative statements, which had the sole purpose of sending a message to Greece, were made by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday, March 6, on the occasion of the “Blue Homeland” exercise. The Turkish president spoke to armed forces officers who took part in the exercise.
At the same time, however, Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced to the Turkish people the new defense doctrine of Turkey, which is now centered on the navy, and not the air force as it was before the cancellation of the F-35 fighters from the US. In fact, Erdogan declared for the first time that “whoever rules the seas, becomes the ruler of the world.”
Erdogan's statements in detail
“We conducted this training exercise in the Aegean and the Mediterranean, in accordance with international law. “It was carried out with great success by our navy, which made us proud, inspiring confidence in friends and fear in enemies,” the Turkish president said of the “Blue Homeland” exercise, adding that “Turkey as a country surrounded by sea and from all three sides throughout history we see that he gave great importance to naval power, in order to ensure the survival of our nation in this difficult geography “.
After referring to the importance of the navy for the history of Turkey, he noted: “For our country, having a strong navy is more than a choice, it is a necessity. We must be strong not only economically and politically, but also in the military and defense sectors. We are obliged to protect the rights of our friends in every corner of our region, especially our citizens and the Turkish Cypriots. Because we know that they have seen a lot in the lands we live in, even in the slightest stumbling block and in the slightest weakness. “The recent events in Syria, Iraq, the Aegean and the eastern Mediterranean have once again reminded us of this truth.”
Inflammatory statements about Cyprus and Greece
During the event he carried out a fierce attack on Cyprus and Greece, but also the European Union, emphasizing that “They tried not to usurp the rights of our nation and the Turkish Cypriots in the eastern Mediterranean, imposing many illegal, secret and overt sanctions on us.”
“We will not allow it to be done in Northern Cyprus. We have made it clear that we will defend our hydrocarbon rights in the eastern Mediterranean at all costs. With the steps we have taken on the basis of international law, we have prevented the occupation of Libya by would-be coup plotters. “We have thwarted all illegal efforts aimed at blocking our country off the coast of Antalya,” the Turkish president said.
In addition, Recep Tayyip Erdogan said during his speech that “based on the explicit command of our ancestors which says” if you want peace, prepare for war “, we try to defend our homeland and our rights … Let us not forget that whoever he is sovereign in the seas, he becomes sovereign of the world. That is why we attach great importance to increasing the deterrent power of our navy “, he concluded.
