Greece coastguard fires on ‘suspicious’ Turkish cargo ship

Turkey says no casualties reported within the incident close to the Turkish island of Bozcaada and calls for a swift investigation.

Greek coastguard ships opened hearth on a cargo vessel crusing in worldwide waters within the Aegean Sea, escalating tensions with Turkey which have mounted in current weeks.

There have been no casualties within the capturing 11 nautical miles (20km) southwest of the Turkish island of Bozcaada on Saturday, a Turkish coastguard assertion stated.

After “harassment hearth” from two Greek vessels, two Turkish coastguard ships went to the world and the Greek boats left, it added.

The Greek coastguard confirmed it fired “warning pictures” at a ship “transferring suspiciously” in Greek territorial waters off the island of Lesbos.

The captain of the cargo ship refused to permit an inspection and was later escorted to close by Turkish waters, stated Greek coastguard officers, noting they knowledgeable maritime authorities in Turkey in regards to the incident.

The realm is thought for a lot of ships bringing migrants from Turkey to the European Union international locations of Greece and Italy. The Greek coastguard says it usually checks ships behaving suspiciously within the Aegean.

The neighbouring international locations have been embroiled in disputes for many years and friction has ratcheted up in current weeks, with either side alleging airspace violations. Greek officers have raised considerations about one other outbreak of battle in Europe following Russia’s conflict in Ukraine.

Ankara has accused Athens of “occupying” some Aegean islands and harassing Turkish jets with Russian-made S-300 defence techniques stationed there. Athens denies the claims.

Greece says it must defend its jap islands, together with vacationer hotspots Rhodes and Kos, that are a lot nearer to Turkey than to the Greek mainland, towards its bigger and militarily stronger neighbour.

‘Disregard of guidelines’

Video footage from Saturday purportedly exhibits a Greek coastguard vessel alongside the Anatolian cargo ship because the sound of a couple of dozen gunshots is heard. A crew member speaks in Turkish, saying they’re being attacked by the Greek coastguard.

The video, which was launched by the Turkish coastguard and appears to have been filmed on a cell phone, exhibits what seems to be a bullet gap in a window and within the ceiling of the cargo ship’s bridge.

The Turkish assertion stated the gunfire was “in disregard of the principles of worldwide regulation”. The 18 crew members of the Anatolian consisted of six Egyptians, 4 Somalis, 5 Azerbaijanis and three Turks.

A Turkish prosecutor ordered an investigation. The nation has additionally protested to Greek authorities, with Ankara demanding a swift investigation and rationalization.

The Anatolian was anchored on Sunday within the Dardanelles Strait off the Turkish coast, the state-run Anadolu information company reported.

Final week, the Greek authorities wrote letters to NATO, the EU, and the United Nations, asking them to formally condemn more and more aggressive discuss by Turkish officers and suggesting tensions might escalate into open battle.

Greek Overseas Minister Nikos Dendias stated the behaviour of Turkey, additionally a NATO member, risked “a scenario much like that presently unfolding in another a part of our continent”, referring to the conflict in Ukraine.