Ruling Party (AKP) Vice President and Spokesman Omer Celik strongly criticized the statements of opposition party Vice President Namik Tan, a former diplomat and ambassador to Washington, and now a Republican Party foreign policy adviser. Speaking to the Turkish National Assembly yesterday on the issue of the deployment of Turkish naval forces in Somalia, Namik Tan described Turkey’s foreign policy as an “expansionist policy”.

Who tells “fairy tales”?

Especially on the issue of the “Blue Homeland” he said that this is a “fairy tale”, provoking the strong reaction of Omer Celik, who responded on Social Media that “we will continue to fight to protect our national rights, interests and benefits in the “Blue Homeland”. The statements of those who defend the claims of Greece and other states are nothing more than “political fairy tales”. It would be healthier to immediately put the protection of Turkey’s rights in the Aegean and the Mediterranean on their agenda,” said Tayyip Erdoğan’s representative, visibly angry.

Celik accused the People’s Republican Party (CHP) of supporting Greece’s positions against Turkey’s national policy and of having lost its political compass. “Our Blue Homeland is an integral part of our Homeland” the representative of the AKP clearly states.

Uproar on the internet too

Namik Tan’s statements caused a lot of negative comments on the internet, including retired admiral Cem Gurdeniz, the originator of the “Blue Homeland” doctrine, who characterized it as “a manifesto of Turkey’s resistance to the Western imperialists of the 21st century.”

“Whoever is in power must keep a firm hold on the Blue Homeland,” concludes the retired admiral, who after Erdogan’s last visit to Athens had said that “Greece cornered us and defeated us in the bra de fer.”