Defense Minister and Tsipras junior coalition partner, Panos Kammenos said on Tuesday that on the issue of the two Greek soldiers in custody, “Turkey operates in the logic of Midnight Express.”
The Greek government will not be involved in exchange matters, Kammenos said stressing that the Turkish side has not asked for exchange of the two Greek soldiers for the 8 Turkish officials who led to Greece after the failed coup of 2016.
The Defense Minister point out that that the two soldiers were patrolling in the Greek-European borders. “Europe can not give Turkey 3 billion euros and treat Greek military personnel as if they were from third world countries, ” he added.
“Turkey is operating in the logic of Midnight Express,” Kammenos said and recalled the case of US pastor Father Brunson who has been arrested in Turkey and then authorities linked his release to exchange with Fetullah Gulen, the Turkish preacher Erdogan considers as his Number One enemy and initiator of the coup.
At the same time, Panos Kammenos defended using the term “hostages” for the Greek soldiers saying and the same term was used by Foreign Minister Nikos Kotzias.
Kammenos has reportedly made these statements during a briefing of the parliamentary group of Independent Greeks.
BTW The much awaited meeting with Prime minister Alexis Tsipras did not end in a divorce for the coalition government partners – as newspapers close to main opposition party speculated on Monday -, but in renewing the wedding vows.
