The suppressed irritation in Turkey, reveals the magnitude of the success of Kyriakos Mitsotakis' visit to the United States. A small victory of Hellenism against the gunboat politics, the methodologies and provocations of Ankara against Greece and Cyprus. A small victory in a battle, because the Turkish side believes that it has not yet said its last word.
[/P]Erdogan and Cavusoglu positioned themselves with great embarrassment, only when questioned and limited themselves to general references mainly to Mitsotakis' words in relation to the Cyprus problem. And these were more for internal consumption than in response to the Greek Prime Minister or US officials, whose attitude caused greater discomfort in Turkey.
The circumstances forced Ankara to moderate its reactions and leave aside the bullying with which it would respond in case Mitsotakis' trip to Washington took place as originally planned. And they could not react as they wanted for two reasons.
The first is the ongoing discussion on regional energy cooperation in the Eastern Mediterranean. The Turkish side is taking a wait-and-see attitude to see how the effort, which essentially involves the US, will develop. It is taking a break from extreme positions and violations, examining the scope for concessions against the benefits it knows well that it will reap.
The second reason is the window of claims that Turkey sees as opening after Sweden and Finland's request for NATO membership. For many analysts, the Turkish government's highly exaggerated reaction against the two Scandinavian countries joining the alliance conceals within it a number of quid pro quos that Ankara wants to promote to its satisfaction. From arms programmes to investments and political support.
The latter is the focus of the Turkish officials' positions, preparing the ground for a tough eastern bargain from which they want to win at all costs. The only certainty is that this attitude of Ankara is setting in motion a series of developments, not necessarily positive for Ankara.
This is because it is now clear that the war in Ukraine has changed many political balances on the planet. Democratic countries have begun to react differently to threats and provocations such as those put on the table by Erdogan. Suspicion was awakened, reflexes were activated and the majority of allied countries are fully aware that they are facing a trouble spot.
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