Erdogan: Greece deliberately violates the provisions of the Lausanne peace treaty

The Turkish Foreign Ministry condemns the decision of Greece to close 4 more Turkish schools in the province of Thrace, located on the border with Turkey. Earlier, Turkish President Erdogan made a similar statement and referred to the violation of the articles of the Lausanne Peace Treaty.

Although the region is part of Turkey and has a population of 150,000, Ankara said 126 Turkish schools have been closed in Thrace over the past 10 years, Sabah reported.

“Given the latest decision, more than half of the schools of the Turkish national minority were closed. Thus, the “temporary suspension of work,” as they call it, turns into a systematic action,” said Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesman Tancu Bilgic.

He reminded Greek officials of the need to comply with the Lausanne Peace Treaty, signed in 1923, according to which the Turks have the right to open, manage and inspect their schools in Greece.

Bilgić called the current policy of the Greek authorities regarding the right of the Turks to education “discriminatory and repressive”. “Greece is closing primary schools on the pretext that there are not enough students, while ignoring numerous requests to open additional middle and high Turkish classes, violating the right of national minorities to education,” said a spokesman for the Turkish Foreign Ministry. He announced that the Republic of Turkey will fight for the preservation of education in the Turkish language in Greece, using both bilateral ties and relations in the international arena.

Similar claims were made by the President of Turkey

“Turkey, approaching with confident steps the 100th anniversary of the establishment of the Republic of Turkey and the signing of the Treaty of Lausanne, which will be celebrated in 2023, also continues to strengthen its position in regional and global issues,” Erdogan said. The Turkish head of state recalled that the Lausanne Peace Treaty made it possible to draw out the land borders of Turkey, guarantee the rights of the Turkish national minority in Greece and confirm the demilitarized status of the Greek islands off the coast of Turkey.

Erdogan stressed that over the past 99 years, Turkey has carefully fulfilled its obligations under the Lausanne Peace Treaty. “However, Greece has recently deliberately violated the provisions of the Lausanne Peace Treaty, in particular, regarding the rights of the Turkish national minority. Turkey cannot accept such a situation, which is contrary to the principles of good neighborliness and commitment to agreements. Ankara is determined to make every effort to establish lasting peace and stability in the region, as well as to ensure the rights of the Turkish people,” the Turkish President added.

Turkey is looking for an excuse to denounce the Lausanne Treaty, Greek political scientists say

These claims from Turkey did not appear by chance, says Greek Turkologist Nikos Chiliadakis. The difficult economic situation, inflation at 150%, puts Turkey’s ruling elite in a difficult situation ahead of next year’s presidential elections. That is why the leadership of Turkey has relied on nationalism and patriotism, fueling the image of the enemy in the face of Greece and the Western world as a whole.

Appearance maps, where the territory of Greece is indicated as Turkishproject “Blue Motherland”, declarations for the demilitarization of the Greek islands and provocative drilling operations in the EEZ of Cyprus – links of one chain.

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