Türkiye protests unlawful deployment of armored vehicles on Aegean islands

ANKARA

Türkiye on Monday lodged a protest with the US and Greece over the unlawful deployment of armored vehicles on Aegean islands with non-military status.

Turkish army drones have recorded the Greek deployment of armored vehicles on the islands of Midilli (Lesvos) and Sisam (Samos), which is in violation of international law.

Türkiye summoned the Greek ambassador and called for an end to violations on Aegean islands and restoring their non-military status, according to the Foreign Ministry.

In the note, the ministry stated that the deployment was another violation of Greece’s obligations under the 1923 Treaty of Lausanne and the 1947 Treaty of Paris.

These islands were required to be demilitarized under the 1923 Treaty of Lausanne and the 1947 Treaty of Paris, so any troops or weapons on the islands are strictly forbidden.

Meanwhile, in a protest note to the US, Türkiye urged respect for the status of Eastern Aegean islands and measures to be taken to prevent the use of its weapons there.

Turkish drone footage, released on Sunday, showed that landing ships carried military vehicles donated by the US to the islands.

According to security sources, the Turkish drones performing a flight mission over the Aegean Sea recorded two Greek landing ships en route to Midilli and Sisam.

It was revealed that the ships were carrying 23 tactical wheeled armored vehicles to Midilli and 18 to Sisam. The armored vehicles were among those sent by the US to the Port of Alexandroupolis (Dedeagac) in Greece.

• Aegean islands
• Greece
• Turkiye
• US