FDD think tank- Put Turkey on Notice

If you’ve been paying attention, you know Israel has Turkey in it’s sights. And you know Greece and Cyprus are happy to go along. This is not a new plan. It’s been in the works for a very long time now.

So here we have the FDD deploying classic DARVO tactics, which is classic gaslighting- It’s not just narcissistic individuals that use this form of manipulation

Turkey has lost no time capitalizing on Iran’s weakening as a major regional actor, with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan constantly framing Turkey’s desire to be respected as a “global actor.” While the news cycle remains fixated on who is winning the Iran war, Ankara has quietly established footholds in Syria and across Africa through military basing, training and weapons sales; deepened strategic investments in Russia spanning energy and trade; adopted an increasingly revisionist posture across the Mediterranean, exemplified by its maximalist interpretation of its maritime borders under the “Blue Homeland” doctrine; and built closer ties with major Arab powers intended to isolate and undermine Israel, mainly through agreements like the Mecca Pact, while championing terrorist entities like Hamas and potentially Hezbollah.

Against this backdrop, Greece, Cyprus and Israel’s defense cooperation is an essential counterbalance, (DARVO) and an initiative the United States needs to strengthen. None of these states has an interest in threatening Ankara; they feel compelled to take defensive measures against its escalatory behavior.

The most recent expression is a major defense export deal between Greece and Israel, the Achilles Shield, which gives Athens new tools in the event of escalation. The €3 billion agreement entails a multi-layered air defense system that would modernize Greece’s military with Israeli-manufactured anti-missile, anti-aircraft and anti-drone systems. It would also give Turkey reason to pause before violating the sovereign borders of the Greek islands and Cyprus.

Cyprus has many Turkish inhabitants…

Cooperation between Greece, Cyprus and Israel is nothing new, and it precedes the emerging defense framework. Energy projects between the three countries have strengthened interconnectivity, regional peace and economic cooperation over the last decade. Greece, Cyprus, Israel and the United States formed the Eastern Mediterranean “3+1” Energy Dialogue in 2019 to address the need for greater energy security.

Cooperation between Greece, Cyprus and Israel isn’t anything new!! The US has long blessed this unholy trinity and Turkey has always been one of it’s intended targets.

Ankara has answered this thickening web of cooperation with pressure rather than diplomacy. In March 2026, Turkey deployed F-16s to the occupied north of Cyprus, the first time it has based combat aircraft there.

These competing frameworks arguably form a textbook security dilemma, in which each bloc’s hedging reads to the other as preparation for attack and the risk is not hypothetical. In August, Israel struck the Abu al-Duhur airbase in Syria to preempt a Turkish deployment, (as Israel claims) prompting Washington’s own envoy to call it an unnecessary escalation.

Which it was, but, no doubt Washington okayed the attack as Washington continues to double deal on Turkey

Greece has undergone substantial defense modernization aligned with US targets and is still a key US ally. As one of only six NATO members spending at least 3 percent of GDP on defense, it focuses on the capabilities that an increasingly threatening environment demands. In 2024, Greece joined the F-35 Lightning II Global Alliance, strengthening both its defense autonomy and interoperability with allies.

Greece’s location at the intersection of the Middle East, North Africa and the Balkans, along with its strength as a maritime power in the Eastern Mediterranean, makes it invaluable on NATO’s southeastern flank. Souda Bay on Crete hosts the NATO Missile Firing Installation and the region’s largest deep-water port. It has hosted the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford in recent months for maintenance during major combat operations against Iran.

Bottom line the US is fully aware and participant in the Cyprus, Greece, Israeli targeting of Turkey..