Acoustic bombs in the waters of the Mediterranean are already exploding, combat swimmers are operating.
According to the Greek publication infognomonpolitics.gr, the Greek military dropped acoustic bombs on a Turkish submarine in the Aegean Sea, which, when exploded, produce low-frequency sound waves that disrupt the coordination of human movements.
The Greek Ministry of Defense and other official authorities did not confirm the episode, but other Greek media also write that the submarine war between the Greeks and the Turks is already underway. According to the military information website armyvoice.gr, combat swimmers who were aboard the Greek submarine damaged the cables with which the Turkish research vessel Oruc Reis was connected to the equipment for underwater seismic prospecting. Oruc Reis was forced to interrupt work and returned to the port of Antalya.
According to the Greek media, President Erdogan announced the attack by the Greek Navy on the Turkish research vessel, who warned that if such cases recur, Greece would receive an immediate and adequate response.
At the same time, the Greek Ministry of Defense reported the discovery of a Turkish submarine in the territorial waters of Greece near Athens, at Cape Sunyon. The frigate Salamis also spotted a Turkish submarine west of the Greek island of Rhodes, while another was in the area of Karpathos. According to the Greek media, Greece has an advantage in control of the sea thanks to the “invisible” type 214 submarines that cannot be detected by Turkish anti-submarine systems.
The media also reported on another dangerous episode at sea, when the Greek frigate Limnos and the Turkish ship Kemalreis hit each other while maneuvering in the Eastern Mediterranean. Armyvoice.gr claims the incident was confirmed by sources at the Department of National Defense. The publication believes that there is an agreement between the Greek and Turkish sides not to attach great importance to what happened; in any case, a representative of the General Staff of the Greek Navy said that, according to his information, no ship collisions were observed. The representative of the Greek General Staff also said that he was not aware of the incident.
Another Greek military website wrote that a Turkish Yavuz-class frigate allegedly tried to ram the Greek warship Limnos, which was watching the Turkish research vessel Oruc Reis. According to the publication, this was done in order to “remove the obstacles created by the Greek fleet for the illegal seismic survey of Oruc Reis”. It is reported that the Greek frigate escaped the ram, but as a result of the maneuver, the Turkish ship was damaged, the portal reports.
The growing tensions in the Eastern Mediterranean are also evidenced by the Eunomia maneuvers taking place on August 26-28, in which the warships of Greece, Cyprus, Italy and France are participating. As the Italian newspaper Il Giornale notes, such teachings are a message to Ankara. Greek Defense Minister Nikos Panagiotopoulos called the maneuvers “an initiative to demonstrate the commitment of four European Mediterranean countries to the rule of law in a policy of easing tensions”.
However, the tension is not weakening, but growing. The Turkish Defense Ministry reported that the Turkish Navy is also continuing naval exercises in the Eastern Mediterranean “together with the naval forces of the allied countries”. In particular, on August 26, the Turkish frigate TCG BARBAROS and the corvette BURGAZADA conducted naval exercises with the American destroyer USS WINSTON S.CHURCHILL. On the same day, Greek Prime Minister Kiryakos Mitsotakis had a telephone conversation with US President Donald Trump. The subject of the conversation was the discussion of the latest developments in the Southeast Mediterranean. Mitslotakis “raised the issue of Turkey’s destabilizing actions that threaten peace and stability in the wider region and test NATO cohesion” and stressed that “Greece is ready to make a significant contribution to de-escalation, provided that Turkey immediately stops its provocative actions”. Trump’s reaction to this statement from the Greek side is unknown.
US Undersecretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Philip Riker condemned Turkey’s policy in the Aegean Sea and the Eastern Mediterranean, stressing that Ankara’s actions undermine NATO’s unity:
“We have repeatedly informed Turkey that its flights over the territory of Greece, its drilling operations in the waters of Cyprus, the signing the memorandum on the delimitation of sea zones with Libya – provocative and useless actions that increase tensions in the region”.
Attention is drawn to the indication of the State Department on the “uselessness” of Turkey’s actions. Experts suggest that the United States will not allow a direct military clash between the two NATO member states. However, is it within the power of Washington, where all political problems have now come down to the question of who will win the elections in November? The conflict between Turkey and Greece is evident; the escalation of statements by the parties continues; there is no way out yet.
Vladimir Malyshev, Federal Grid Company