Turkey's press is mapping out the next Greece-Turkey crisis, and one scenario stands out: Athens shooting down a Turkish...

Turkey's press is mapping out the next Greece-Turkey crisis, and one scenario stands out: Athens shooting down a Turkish drone over the Aegean. Hurriyet published a piece outlining four flashpoints it believes could trigger a new confrontation between the two countries. The first is a repeat of the 2020 Oruc Reis incident, when a Turkish research vessel entered Greece's continental shelf and the two navies faced off at sea, with frigates from both sides colliding. The second is an escalation over Turkish fishing boats operating in areas Greece considers its exclusive economic zone. The third, and most alarming to Turkish analysts, is an aerial confrontation involving Turkish drones, with Hurriyet specifically warning that Athens could consider shooting one down, a move the paper says could trigger rapid escalation. The fourth scenario plays out on a longer timeline, centered on the delivery of the Israeli-Greek "Shield of Achilles" air defense system in 2027. Turkish columnist Ahmet Hakan took a mocking tone toward the "Shield of Achilles" name, comparing it to "naming a giant warship the Titanic" and noting that Achilles, for all his armor, still had his heel. The underlying message was a veiled threat. Meanwhile, Greece's Foreign Ministry has formally cited its right to extend territorial waters to 12 nautical miles south of Crete, a move Turkish media flagged as a major provocation. There are no talks scheduled between Mitsotakis and Erdogan on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York, which analysts say signals just how strained relations have become. The real test on the ground could come with the resumption of the Greece-Cyprus undersea cable project, operated by French company Meridiam, which Turkish officials have previously opposed. #Greece #Turkey #Aegean