In a move to escalate tension between Ankara and Greece, Turkish Defense Minister Khulosi Akar warned of his country's ships being subjected to new harassment in the eastern Mediterranean.
Akar said in remarks quoted by the Anatolia News Agency on Wednesday that the Turkish warships are working to provide the necessary protection in the region.
The Turkish ministry said last week that the navy had prevented a Greek frigate from harassing an average Turkish ship and had asked Greece to avoid further escalation in the region.
Commenting on the incident last Thursday, Akar said Turkey would never allow its ships in the region to be subjected to new harassment.
On Greece's intention to expand its maritime borders, Akar said: "We want to resolve the issues through peaceful means and through talks, without turning them into conflicts."
On Tuesday, Greece indicated that the expansion of territorial waters is an indisputable sovereign right, ignoring warnings from Turkey against the move.
"The extension of the Sahel is an undeniable legal sovereign right of Greece under international law," a Greek Foreign Ministry spokesman said in a written statement.
"The decision on enlargement is for Greece alone, and it has the right to extend its territorial waters at any time and as it sees fit.
In response to this statement, Akar stressed that the Turkish Ministry of Defense continues to make all continuous efforts, so that the Turkish army is a deterrent force.
He pointed out that Turkey has the necessary measures against any step that may be submitted by Greece in violation of international laws.
