Turkey’s decision to unilaterally issue a Notice to Airmen (“NOTAM”), reserving an extensive airspace over the Aegean Sea from the 2nd of March to 31st of December for military use is considered a serious provocation, with the Greek government prepared to take the matter to NATO, the United Nations, the European Union and the International Civil Aviation Authority (ICAO).
The area which has Turkey has decided to reserve extends west of Skyros to the of East of Limnos and within the Flight Information Region (FIR) of Athens, essentially splitting the Aegean in two. This is the second major Turkish provocation in the Aegean in the past two months. On the 31st of December 2014, Turkey issued two NAVTEX broadcasts, reserving large areas in the north and central Aegean for 2015.
The latest Turkish provocation came as a surprise, as a week before, on Thursday, the Greek government offered to begging talks about Trust Building Measures between the two neighboring countries. Turkey agreed to Greek request, making the latest provocation even more confusing.
With geopolitical tension constantly on the rise in northern Africa, the Middle East and Ukraine, Athens will seek out the support from its partners in tackling the latest Turkish provocation in the Aegean.
