Copyright thenationalherald
If there was any doubt left about the hypocrisy that is a defining character trait of some of Greece’s NATO and EU allies, the recent sale of 20 brand new Eurofighter Typhoon jets to Turkey by the consortium of Great Britian, Germany, Spain, and Italy makes matters very plain. For all their virtue signaling, all that most of the members in these blocs ultimately care about is their own self-interest and profit. In that sense, Great Britain’s Premier Keir Starmer had little difficulty swallowing Turkey’s ongoing diplomatic tryst with Russia, support of radical Islamist terrorist groups, and jailing of numerous elected officials, including Istanbul’s last elected mayor Ekrem Imamoglu. Naturally, this deal required the approval of Britain’s consortium partners, with the German Chancellor Friedrich Merz visiting Ankara just days after Starmer to likely ink more lucrative deals. Germany is pressuring Greece and Cyprus to not block Turkey from joining the EU’s SAFE defense initiative plan, which is a funding mechanism providing low-interest loans to participants. The fact that Turkey continues its illegal occupation of Cyprus or challenges Greece’s sovereignty in the Aegean and Eastern Mediterranean appears to be a mere afterthought for Berlin. While President Trump’s self-proclaimed admiration for Turkish strongman Tayyip Erdogan raised concerns he would facilitate Turkish procurement of advanced U.S. weapons, like the F-35 aircraft that Ankara covets but is barred from possessing because of sanctions it incurred for violating CAATSA, it turned out to be Greece’s European ‘partners’ and NATO ‘allies’ who did the dirty deed. For yet another time in recent history, behaviors like this give new meaning to the adage “with friends like these, who needs enemies…” Turkey’s acquisition of the Eurofighter jet cancels out the aerial advantage that Athens had enjoyed in recent years, following the upgrading of its own air force with 24 Rafale jets. Like the Rafale, the Eurofighter Typhoon carries the powerful Meteor missile, which now gives Turkey similar firepower to Greece in the skies. Athens must now wait for the delivery of its order of F-35s to regain its qualitative aerial advantage against its hostile neighbor. In the end, despite European criticism of U.S. policies – particularly at present– at least America has certain basic rules and guidelines by which successive administrations must abide – something that the EU appears to be sorely lacking. This begs the question how can the EU possibly continue to exist in the future as a geopolitical force and confront major challenges when its members prioritize their own profit over the bloc’s collective principles? It is laughable to think that this ragtag group of nations would ever truly be able to confront a military power like Russia (not to mention to China) on the battlefield without the support of the U.S. The Brussels-based bloc can’t even hold the line on issues that are directly related to its core values, like democracy and humanitarian rights, or the respect for the territorial integrity of its member-states. The U.S. dollar may have lost value in recent months, but with such an evident disconnect between the countries comprising the EU, not only does it appear that the euro is overvalued at this particular moment, but rather, its very existence as a currency should be called into question, because it has become painfully obvious that when push comes to shove, the only thing that one can expect from this ‘union’ of nations is for them to unravel like an old sweater, with each nation pursuing its own interests. Despite the political polarization present in the U.S., at least the individual states receive the full backing and support of the federal government. Greece may be strategically invested in the concept of European integration, but it must not overlook history’s recurring lessons. From the Fourth Crusade culminating in the sack of Constantinople all the way up to the 21st century, Greece has at times suffered genocide, foreign invasion and occupation, mass starvation, and forced impoverishment with European nations playing the role of direct protagonist or at the very least moral accomplice to the perpetrators. Meanwhile, the West’s pietistic posturing has often covered up some of the world’s greatest hypocrisy, and this hasn’t changed much since then. Therefore, Greece and Cyprus must have no qualms about serving their national interests first, despite whatever pressure their EU partners may exercise for Turkey to join the European defense framework. Ankara may have powerful friends looking to do business with them, but it has also managed to make major enemies (i.e., Israel). Hellenism must do everything it can to amplify the voices of reason that are prepared to call out the EU’s hypocrisy and eventually force its leaders to justify their actions to their voters and the international community. Follow me on X @CTripoulas
