Turkish Coastguard halts Greek fishermen in Turkish territorial waters

MUĞLA – Doğan News Agency

A Turkish Coastguard ship sails off Kardak. Greece and Turkey almost went to war over the islets in 1996.

The Turkish Coastguard prevented Greek fishermen from casting their nets inside Turkish territorial waters in the Aegean on Nov. 7.

After Greek fishermen wanted to cast their nets off of the Kardak islets, facing mainland Turkey, a Turkish coastguard boat intervened by approaching and forcing them away from the territories.

The fishing boats later tried to cast their nets again in front of the island, but were again prevented by the coastguards. The fishermen later retreated back to Greek territorial waters.

The Kardak islets - known as Imia in Greek and Kardak in Turkish - are a pair of two small uninhabited rocks in the Aegean Sea, situated between the Greek Dodecanese island chain and the southwestern mainland coast of Turkey. Greece and Turkey almost went to war over the islets in 1996.  

Last month, the naval forces of Turkey and Greece played a brief game of cat-and-mouse on the Aegean on the afternoon of Nov. 12, after a Greek coastguard boat harassed Turkish fishermen inside Turkish waters.