ATHENS –  After being reluctant to show too much support to Greece in disputes with Turkey over the seas and islands, Germany is taking a harder line against Turkish talk of encroachment.

Germany’s Ambassador to Greece, Ernst Reichel, said that any questioning of Greece’s territorial integrity and sovereignty by Turkey just can’t be acknowledged, joining with other German officials in backing Greece.

The statement came after Devlet Bahceli, junior coalition partner in Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s government, showed a photo holding a map depicting large Greek islands, including Crete, as  being Turkish, said Kathimerini.

“The German position is clear: Any questioning of Greece’s territorial integrity and sovereignty is unacceptable,” the envoy said, retweeting a comment by Greek Premier Kyriakos Mitsotakis, who requested a clarificatiofrom Erdogan.

“Take a good look at this map. Crete, Rhodes, Lesvos, Chios, Samos all consumed by Turkey. Α fever dream of extremists or Turkey’s official policy? Another provocation or the true goal? President Erdogan must make his position clear on his junior coalition partner’s latest antics,” said Mitsotakis in a tweet in English.