Türkiye has ‘no intention’ of attacking Greece, claims defense university rector

Turkish National Defense University rector claimed Türkiye has no intention of attacking Greece and suggested that Athens is wasting money on unnecessary military expenditures, according to Greek media reports.

Greek news outlet Newsbeast reported on comments made by Professor Erhan Afyoncu, rector of Türkiye’s National Defense University, during an appearance on a Turkish television program.

Afyoncu referenced a conversation with a Greek soldier, stating that Türkiye has no interest in claiming Greek territory, though he emphasized that Ankara maintains certain rights in the Aegean Sea.

Greece buys weapons ‘for nothing’

“They’re paying 500 million ($523.62 million) to 600 million euros to buy frigates from France. Why are you buying them? In the event of a war with the Republic of Türkiye tomorrow, you have no chance of standing against us with those. But we have no intention of attacking you. They’re selling you weapons for nothing,” Afyoncu was quoted as saying.

The defense official also reportedly noted that Greece maintains a defense budget comparable to Türkiye’s despite having a significantly smaller population, suggesting that such spending levels are disproportionate for a country of Greece’s size.

Afyoncu reportedly called for dialogue between the two countries to discuss these issues, according to the Greek media report.