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The US-Turkey relationship has been characterized by a steady attempt at “hostage diplomacy” on the part of Ankara, and its veto over Sweden and Finland’s NATO membership bids is the latest example. One devastating effect of this consistent use of “hostage diplomacy”, as HALC’s Executive Director Endy Zemenides argues in his latest piece in Kathimerini, is that the US government has developed...

15 λεπτά

Greece has quietly been building an anti-drone system that will significantly enhance its ability to defend its islands in the Aegean. The system being deployed, which uses Israeli technology and has similar characteristics to Israel’s Drone Dome, essentially operates in a way that interferes with the flight capability of potential enemy UAVs. Aside from this anti-drone system, Greece is also...

11 λεπτά

Earlier this week there were many who anticipated that Turkey would stand by its veto over Sweden and Finland’s NATO membership bids. Instead, on Tuesday night we saw the three countries reach an agreement that NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg said addressed Turkey’s concerns, essentially paving the way for the Nordic countries to join NATO. After the deal was reached, we saw President Biden meet...

13 λεπτά

This year holiday bookings to Greece are skyrocketing, and many are hoping Greece could reach or even exceed the numbers from 2019, a record breaking summer. While visitors are returning to Greece en masse this summer, the country is struggling to find enough people to work in its vital tourism industry to cope with this increase in demand. Prime Minister Mitsotakis even described these...

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Last week Bulgaria’s government collapsed after a no-confidence vote in parliament. The move comes at a delicate time - especially considering Bulgaria’s position vis-a-vis Ukraine and Russia, and its role in holding up the EU integration of North Macedonia and Albania. Following the vote of no-confidence, Bulgaria’s parliament voted to lift its veto on North Macedonia’s EU membership bid,...

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As this week’s NATO summit kicks off, instead of welcoming Sweden and Finland into the alliance, leaders will have to address the question of Turkey, which is derailing NATO’s enlargement and threatening NATO ally Greece. While Greece is prepared to respond decisively if Turkish President Erdogan raises questions about the sovereignty of Greek islands in the Aegean at the summit, the question...

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This week the EU’s 27 leaders took a historic step during a two day summit in Brussels to grant EU candidate status to Ukraine. While the move marks a significant step for EU enlargement efforts, Western Balkan leaders, who traveled to Brussels for high level meetings with their EU counterparts, were left frustrated at the lack of movement on their bids to join the bloc. Ukraine and the Western...

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Last week the EU finalized a natural gas agreement with Israel and Egypt, building on what’s been a busy month when it comes to energy in the Eastern Mediterranean. These agreements further showcase how the region can be a game-changer in reducing the dependence of America’s European allies on Russian energy. At the same time, however, we’re seeing state and non-state actors in the region -...

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In response to Turkey’s clear aggression in the Aegean, the State Department has resorted to a policy of neutrality and equidistance. Instead of calling out Turkey’s revisionism and condemning its threats against Greece in a clear and unequivocal way, it has resorted to on the one hand supporting the principle of sovereignty and territorial integrity, and on the other calling on “both sides” to...

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This week Western Balkan leaders will travel to Brussels for a high-level meeting with EU leaders where they will discuss progress on their integration with the EU and the challenges posed by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The meeting comes as the debate over EU enlargement picks up again, which has seen calls from key European leaders for the EU to live up to its promises to the Western Balkans...

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Last week Greece’s Defense Minister Nikos Panagiotopoulos and his Turkish counterpart Hulusi Akar held a brief one-on-one meeting in Brussels. The meeting came amid escalating aggressive rhetoric from Ankara that has taken tensions between Greece and Turkey to dangerous levels. Vassilis Nedos, Kathimerini’s diplomatic and defense editor, joins Thanos Davelis with the latest analysis on last...

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Greece has stepped up efforts to combat wildfires in the wake of last year’s devastating blazes as the country braces itself for another scorching summer. As Christos Stylianides, Greece’s first minister for climate crisis and civil protection, laid out in a recent interview with the Financial Times, Athens is hiring more specialized firefighters and planes, increasing spending, and piloting an...

9 λεπτά

A climate of mistrust toward Turkey, which has been prominent in the halls of Congress, has now spread and taken hold across Washington, DC. This is particularly notable following Ankara’s veto over Sweden and Finland’s NATO membership bid, its decision to launch a new incursion into Syria, its relations with Russia, and its dangerous escalation of tensions with Greece. Lena Argiri, the DC...

10 λεπτά

While Russian-Turkish dealings in a number of conflict hotspots in the Middle East, the Black Sea and the Caucasus have attracted international attention, reactions to Ankara and Moscow’s collaboration when it comes to nuclear energy have been rather muted. Professor Ioannis Grigoriadis joins Thanos Davelis to look into the nuclear plant Russia and Turkey are building at Akkuyu, discuss its...

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In its quest for strategic autonomy, Turkey is pursuing a radical revision of the regional status quo by projecting power in the region with increasing aggression and disregard for international law. Admiral Alexandros Diakopoulos, the former National Security Advisor for the Greek Prime Minister, joins Thanos Davelis to look at Ankara’s pursuit of strategic autonomy and hegemony of the Eastern...

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Erdogan warned that he was “not joking” on Thursday about his demand for Greece to demilitarize its Aegean islands, and Foreign Minister Cavusoglu has warned Greece to demilitarize or face a debate about the island’s sovereignty. Greece has effectively rebuked Turkey’s claims, but Ankara continues to escalate its rhetoric. Professor Petros Liakouras joins Thanos Davelis to break down why Turkey...

15 λεπτά

The war in Ukraine – one of the world’s biggest exporters of grain – is fuelling food shortages around the world and pushing millions of people into famine, raising fears of new waves of refugees toward southern Europe. The EU’s Mediterranean countries, which would be on the frontlines once again, are on alert, and have called on the EU to act with urgency on this issue and take steps to show...

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In late May, Turkish President Erdogan announced that Turkey plans to launch another operation into northern Syria. Turkish artillery fire in the region has been registered since early June, while Russia has intensified military patrols in the parts of northern Syria it controls. Both the US and Russia have called on Turkey not to launch this new military operation in the region. Ambassador...

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Cyprus is lodging a complaint to the UN over Turkey’s new financial assistance deal with Turkish Cypriots and over Turkey’s decision to designate the Turkish Cypriots’ unrecognized main airport as a domestic flight route, effectively turning it into a Turkish one. There is a fear among Turkish Cypriots as well that both the financial deal and the airport designation are the clearest signals yet...

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Since its inception, the Turkish government has used the Grey Wolves, a Turkish ultranationalist organization, to target Kurds and other minorities both within Turkey and abroad. Diliman Abdulkader, the Co-Founder and Director of American Friends of Kurdistan, joins Thanos Davelis to discuss his latest publication on the Grey Wolves, which highlights their links to past and present Turkish...

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