Coercion, bullying, and military activity is not the way to resolve tensions in the Eastern Mediterranean, said U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Friday during a teleconference interview on the Hugh Hewitt Show in the US.
Responding to a question on whether Turkey’s provocative activities have irreversibly damaged its relations with its NATO allies, Pompeo said that the US “need(s)Turkey to be a good NATO partner to assist in the security of NATO’s southern flank.”
On his recent visit to Greece, and specifically to Souda Bay defense base on Crete, the secretary said that he went there to ensure that “NATO partners in the region, the Eastern Mediterranean, found a peaceful way to resolve their maritime conflicts.” He stressed that for the dispute about waters “there are mechanisms, legal mechanisms, international law that can resolve this.”
In conclusion, he expressed the hope that “every party that is engaged there will come to see that, and they’ll get back to the negotiating table and resolve their maritime conflicts.”
