Former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, in his book "Letzte Chance (Last Chance)", refers to Turkey as supposedly the greatest power in the Mediterranean, completely erasing Greece from the map, in another indication of the dubious and dangerous policy of Berlin in our region.
"Turkey, Russia and China are the most important players in world politics," the former German chancellor said, adding that "Turkey is now the undisputed dominant power in the eastern Mediterranean."
He even warns us that Turkey will not in any case give up its demands in the Eastern Mediterranean.
In his book, Schroeder states that a new world order is needed and stresses that this is the last chance for the West.
At the end of the book he states that: "The West always behaves with the logic of the Cold War. Will we welcome the Turks or not, since they are now the undisputed dominant force in the Eastern Mediterranean.
Us Europeans, especially the Germans, have treated this country (Turkey) and its people in a humiliating way for decades. Since the European Economic Community and Turkey signed a partnership agreement in 1963, no one in Germany has effectively opened up the prospect of joining the EU.
No party in our country was honest, except for the last period of the SPD-Greens coalition. Of course, the abolition of the visa regime introduced by Germany in 1980, taking into account the movement of migrants and refugees, must be carefully weighed. But the tactic of distracting from this issue is not acceptable.
The requirement to meet dozens of conditions for visa liberalization, the significant progress in the EU accession negotiations or the postponement of the Customs Union update means that we do not really want the Turks.
This policy is doomed to bankruptcy though. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will reconsider the basis of his country's foreign policy, with no plans to relinquish power in the Eastern Mediterranean, ignoring the international community.
The war in Syria cannot be resolved today without the approval of Ankara and Moscow. Turkey is hosting millions of refugees from Syria and we must not forget that.
Gone are the days when Turkish ministers and presidents had to wait in the front rooms of Bonn or Berlin.
Turkey now has a significant defense industry. Turkish companies develop, manufacture and sell helicopters, TOMA and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), which are implemented by very few countries such as Israel.
Although their engine technology is still sourced from foreign countries, their effective weapons systems have been used in Nagorno-Karabakh, Syria, Iraq and Libya.
"Ankara's arms industry and the dependence of many countries on it are fast approaching Ankara's goal of becoming a regional power in the eastern Mediterranean, and this inevitably affects the Middle East, the oldest and hottest crisis area in the world," he said.
Turkey violates an entire list of human rights, kills Kurdish and Armenian citizens, tortures Turkish citizens and war prisoners and is on the verge of bankruptcy.
Former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder either does not know this, or he goes beyond it. He also erases all the Mediterranean countries, "presenting" the image of a mighty Turkey, which, however, runs with "feet of clay", as many international experts suggest.
*Edited by Evangelos D. Kokkinos
