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The UN Security Council recently extended the mandate of the UN mission to Libya – known as UNSMIL – for another year, a move welcomed by Greek diplomats. This decision puts the spotlight on the situation in Libya, where the Tripoli government seems to be giving Turkey a blank check as we’ve seen with the recent illegal Turkish-Libyan MoU on energy exploitation and Ankara’s increasing military...

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On Tuesday Israelis went to the polls for the fifth time in four years, and analysts expected a tight race for the 120-member Knesset, Israel's parliament. As Israelis wait for the final results of these elections, which are expected later this week, countries in the region - from Greece and Cyprus to the UAE - are also watching the results closely. Seth Frantzman, the Senior Middle East...

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On Friday Finland and Sweden’s prime ministers said they will join NATO at the same time, presenting a united front to Turkey which has raised questions about both their applications. All NATO members, besides Turkey and Hungary, have approved their bids. The new Swedish government has also stated that it will fulfill all requirements under a deal signed earlier this year with Turkey to join...

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Thanks to investments in the port of Alexandroupolis and the start of the commercial operation of the IGB pipeline, Greece is emerging as a key player in the region. The operation of a second natural gas pipeline from Greece to North Macedonia now presents an opportunity for the region to connect even further and for Greece to cement its role as an energy hub. At the same time, European...

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Every year on October 28th Greece remembers its entry into World War II and the moment in 1940 when it refused to surrender to Mussolini’s Italy, choosing to fight for independence and against fascism. Greek resistance to fascist Italy and then Nazi Germany inspired many in occupied Europe, and came at a time when the Axis seemed invincible. This year’s commemoration comes as people across the...

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German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, who arrived in Athens on Wednesday evening, kicked off his visit to Greece on Thursday morning with a visit to the Acropolis with Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis. Scholz is the first German chancellor to visit Greece in the post-Merkel era. This visit comes one year after former Chancellor Angela Merkel was in Athens, and the dynamics are drastically different...

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Migration is back in the headlines this week, as the UN released a report warning of increasing numbers of deaths on routes across the Mediterranean, on land borders to Europe and within the continent. The news comes as Greece’s migration ministry released statistics of an 80% increase in migrant arrivals, as Europe turns its attention to curbing migration via the so-called Balkan route, and as...

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On Tuesday, November 8th, Americans will be heading to the polls to vote in a midterm election that many anticipate will have an enormous impact on the direction of the US. While it looked like Democrats may have gained some momentum late this summer, polling shows that Republicans are regaining the edge, meaning the leadership of the House and the Senate is up for grabs. The outcome of the...

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The Mediterranean, which connects Europe, Africa and the Middle East, is once again on the frontlines of important developments - as it stands at the crossroads of multiple crises engineered by Russia as part of its effort to weaken Europe’s resolve. In addition, China and Iran are looking to make inroads into the region, while countries like Turkey have also embraced a disruptive role,...

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Late last week 92 asylum seekers were found by Greek police and European border guards stripped naked at the Evros border between Greece and Turkey. Questions about this incident spilled over onto Twitter, where Greece and Turkey traded accusations about what happened as Greece’s officials said that Turkey orchestrated the incident. In 2020 Turkey encouraged migrants to storm the Evros border,...

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While everyone’s attention is on Ukraine, key developments in Syria have gone under the radar. Recent reports put the spotlight on Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the jihadi faction that runs the northwestern province of Idlib, which had moved into Afrin, the Kurdish-majority enclave that was occupied by Turkey in 2018. This move, and the broader trend we are seeing of gradual HTS expansion and...

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This week is largely seen as crucial for European leaders as they work to make sure rising energy prices and short supplies do not further tank their struggling economies while keeping all 27 members united in their opposition to Russian President Vladimir Putin. Leading up to this week’s key summit, the European Commission announced a set of new emergency measures - including seeking a price...

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Tensions in the Aegean, Turkish overflights over Greek islands and its violations of Greek airspace, and the evolving story in the US over the sale of F-16s to Turkey have put the issue of air superiority in the Aegean and the Eastern Mediterranean into focus. Today the pendulum is swinging toward Greece, as it has taken key steps to bolster its air-defense capabilities while Turkey has seen...

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Turkey’s President Erdogan and Russia’s President Putin met this week in Kazakhstan, where Putin floated a proposal to turn Turkey into an energy hub that could feed Europe with Russian gas. On Friday, Erdogan gave the project the green light, saying that Turkey and Russia had instructed their respective energy authorities to immediately begin technical work on Putin’s proposal. This proposal...

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Despite the fact that amendments attaching strings to the sale of F-16 fighter jets and upgrade kits to Turkey were not included in the US Senate’s version of the annual defense spending bill, or the NDAA, this week, the issue of US F-16 sales to Turkey is not over. This was made clear when Senator Menendez tweeted that he will not approve any F-16s for Turkey until Erdogan halts his campaign...

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Prime Minister Mitsotakis has said that he believes Britain is edging closer to returning the Parthenon Marbles, and will raise the subject with the UK’s new Prime Minister, Liz Truss, on an upcoming visit to London this year. Mitsotakis said he believes the “mood is changing in the UK,” a reference to reports that, after decades of defensiveness, the British Museum may be ready to do a deal....

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It’s been roughly a week since Turkey and the Tripoli-based Libyan government signed an agreement on hydrocarbon exploration, a follow up agreement to their illegal 2019 memorandum on their exclusive economic zones that completely disregards geography and international law. Greece is looking to its partners and allies amid concerns that this latest deal could further escalate tensions in the...

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The war in Ukraine seems to have given Turkey’s President Erdogan a renewed lease on life in Western capitals, while at the same time giving Turkey leverage to press its Western allies into ignoring its non-stop abuses - primarily directed against NATO ally Greece - simply to get Turkey to help Ukraine against Russia. This dynamic is playing out most clearly in DC with Turkey’s request to...

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Europe’s attention was on Prague on Thursday and Friday as the leaders of Europe’s countries, from the broader region and the EU specifically, met to tackle key issues facing the continent - from the war in Ukraine to the looming energy crisis. Aside from attempting to tackle these pressing issues, the two days also saw lingering tensions come to the forefront. Turkey’s Erdogan once again...

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A close reading of recent statements and threats by President Erdogan and Turkish officials that target not only Greece, but also the US, as well as a consistent pattern of events over the last months, show that the risk of conflict between Turkey and Greece is on the rise. Ryan Gingeras, a professor in the Department of National Security Affairs at the Naval Postgraduate School, an expert on...

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