In February 2020, as we all know, our "friends", the Turks, tested Greece's security system in Evros, with a regular hybrid attack of thousands of illegal immigrants simultaneously at many points of the Greek-Turkish border.
This was a dress rehearsal by Ankara, which wanted to test a military operational plan in practice, but found a terribly determined attitude of the army, police and Greek citizens, forcing the EU to help us by sending troops.
While we then had for a period a clear challenge from the Turks, which we returned to them, suddenly, we as a government lowered our tone and kept a 'silent stance', instead of continuing to call this act an 'act of aggression at least' to the whole planet and the USA, which from the beginning kept silent.
It was then that "the well-known invisible hand" appeared for the first time, stopping us, so as not to further increase the tension between the two countries in the SE wing of NATO.
But only on the Greek side, because Erdogan and his regime continued the crescendo of provocativeness, with the conversion of Hagia Sophia into a Mosque and statements of the type "we will come suddenly one night."
Then the Turks gradually attempted to send illegal immigrants into our country from the islands, with night operations.
And then the reaction of the Greek Coast Guard, which was in charge of the whole operation, was exemplary, implementing the obvious, that is, the boats that approached Greek territorial waters were "returned" to Turkish waters.
Then the Turks started a propaganda orgy against Athens, that allegedly the Greek side is "sinking boats and drowning defenseless migrants", which does not correspond to reality with our coastguard saving hundreds of people.
Combined with many strange accidents in the Greek Archipelago, the well-known "invisible hand" gradually reappeared, and the Greek side received waves of migrants from the Turkish coast to our islands, this time in broad daylight, without our reacting at least as before.
At the same time, since 2020, the Greek Ministry of Defense was implementing an armament program that had not been done since the time of Eleftherios Venizelos, at least initially with the number of weapons systems we were going to acquire.
At the same time, we were preparing for the extensive modernization of our weapons systems in the East Aegean islands, because of their age, and because of the threat of the Turks with drones, and mobile missile systems and radars on the Asia Minor coast, and we also sent weapons to Ukraine expecting with a good deal to receive more new systems, which did not continue.
At the same time Turkish drones were even recording the suppliers of Greek KPSMs to our units on the islands, ostensibly shouting about Greek offensive weapons against Turkey.
Some time ago the "invisible hand" appeared again in the skies of Athens and stood over Maximou, so that we heard about a meeting between Mitsotakis and Erdogan ( 7 Dec 2023), and about a good climate between the two countries, which in reality was initiated by Ankara, which had other plans.
The meeting of the two leaders took place, smiles and good times were seen, signatures were signed with the declaration of Athens, receiving a supposedly friendly attitude of the Turks, who, however, not only do not back down on what they are asking for in the Aegean, but through Erdogan they also included Thessaloniki in the "Turkish border of the heart".
The immediate impact was to cancel ( why we cannot explain), a number of military programs, such as the Corvette ( along with others), which are key to the so-called maritime supremacy in the Aegean and Eastern Mediterranean, while by transferring our weapons to Ukraine, we have depleted our islands of weapons systems.
The Greek press reported that "all armaments, apart from those in the process of implementation, are put on ice until further notice, as the Minister of National Defence, Nikos Dendias, has called for "reassessment and prioritisation of armaments programmes and prudent budgetary management".
Suddenly and completely unjustifiably even the F-35 aircraft that we certainly had are hopelessly delayed, while we already have interventions by Greek-Americans like Eddie Zemenides and others at the White House.
The Turks are working day and night for military superiority over Greece
In the same period, we inform that the Turkish war industry has exports of 6 billion dollars, covers 65% of the needs of the Turkish Armed Forces, while it is implementing 650 offensive weapon systems programs, in addition to building one frigate every year, 6 Type-214 and Turkish-built submarines, numerous unmanned vehicles in all three dimensions, while the Anatoli helicopter carrier is flying at every opportunity.
Also most importantly, the neighbours are struggling to ensure that the new Turkish submarines are capable of launching ATMACA ballistic missiles against surface targets, targeting of course the Greek mainland.
The Turks in two years from now, probably ( if nothing sudden happens) will be ready for possible warfare with a multitude of weapon systems, having filled their ammunition depots ( they did not send ammunition to Ukraine except after ordering a few batches), against our country, and then 'friendship' will not be necessary for them of course.
We will then be waiting for the French Frigates, we will still be discussing the modernisation of the MEKOs, the Leopard-1 tanks, we will probably be building small drones of small size and capabilities, but we will not have achieved what was originally planned in 2020.
The " invisible hand" will have stopped, in short, the arming of our country, so that it will be ready for any challenge from the Turks, who in case of a possible US-Russia rift will attempt to impose their presence in the SE Mediterranean, just as our " friends the Italians" had done when Germany started World War II, and we really hope that we will have the scandalous favour of the Virgin Mary with us as we did then.
