WASHINGTON – Asked how concerned the US is over Turkish military flights over Greek islands, and how do those actions impact NATO’s stability, State Department spokesperson Ned Price said:

“We encourage all countries to respect the sovereign airspace of other countries and to operate state aircraft with due regard for the safety of navigation of civil aircraft. Where disagreements exist over the limits of a country’s territorial airspace, we urge coordination and discussion, not provocative actions that could lead to deadly accidents. As a matter of principle, we encourage all states to resolve maritime delimitation issues peacefully and in accordance with international law.”

44 national airspace violations by Turkey registered on Friday

Four pairs of Turkish F-16s, one Turkish unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) and two Turkish navy transport aircraft CN-235 entered Athens FIR on Friday without having submitted a flight plan, the Hellenic National Defence General Staff (HNDG) reported on Friday.

A total of 9 infringements of the Athens Flight Information Region developed into 44 violations of national airspace: 29 by the CN-235s, 3 by the fighter jets and 12 by the UAV, across the entire Greek archipelago, while 2 Turkish aircraft were carrying weapons.

All Turkish aircraft were intercepted by Greek fighter jets, per international protocols, except for one case in which the interception turned into a dogfight, noted HNDG.