As we reach the fifteenth of August, the feast of the Virgin Mary, comparative developments regarding Greece and Turkey, as can be seen from the following events, cause sadness.

Erdogan, seemingly turning his back on the West, met for the second time, in three weeks, with Putin.

What are they talking about? Only they know. Erdogan does not take his Foreign Minister with him to their meetings.

However, it is clear that for his part, the Turkish President is offering Putin the opportunity to show his people that he is not isolated.

And to Erdogan, Putin is offering him the chance to secure massive economic benefits, up to $100 billion, to bolster the Turkish Central Bank’s near-depleted foreign exchange reserves and to reduce inflation, which officially stands at 80 percent.

The result is that Turkey is playing the role of a large regional power, thus exerting a more general influence in its region.

At the same time, with their statements, both the Minister of Foreign Affairs and the Minister of Defense of Turkey warned Greece again that they are not going to accept the ‘militarization’ of the islands and that they will protect “their rights” in every way.

Meanwhile, the newspaper Ta Nea, in a notable report, reveals that: “The political and military leadership of the country is on high alert for fear of a hot episode that Turkey may set up during the three days of the August 15 holiday.”

And the New York Times, after a delay of eight days, published a report from Athens about the eavesdropping scandal, in which they present the situation in the country not particularly accurately:

“The scandal has echoes of the dark old days of Greece’s military junta.”

They probably have an exaggerated image of the 1967-1973 Greek junta.

I say that we must be careful not to miss the forest for the trees. Investigate the issue of wiretapping – but let’s keep our minds on our national security issues as well…