Turkey's air force flew fighter jets and support aircraft south of Cyprus this week, claiming the mission was about prot...

Turkey's air force flew fighter jets and support aircraft south of Cyprus this week, claiming the mission was about protecting what it calls its "rights and interests" in the Mediterranean. The country's defense ministry released video footage of the operation and described the aircraft as "steel wings in the skies of the Mediterranean," saying the activity was continuing "with determination." The flights are part of Turkey's Denizkurdu-I/2026 naval and air exercise, which launched September 20 and runs through September 25. The exercise spans the Black Sea, Sea of Marmara, Aegean, and eastern Mediterranean simultaneously, involving naval, army, and air force units alongside the coast guard, with live weapons training included. Turkey framed the mission as aimed at strengthening operational readiness and protecting what Ankara calls its Mediterranean interests, though Greece and Cyprus reject that framing entirely. Greece contests Turkey's maritime jurisdiction claims under international law, pointing to the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea as the binding framework for any resolution. This latest air activity follows an incident earlier this month when Turkey sent a research vessel south of Kastellorizo, drawing an immediate Greek counter-Navtex rejecting Ankara's authority to issue navigational instructions in the area. Cyprus remains at the center of this tension, with Turkey occupying roughly one-third of the island since its 1974 invasion, 52 years ago, in defiance of multiple UN resolutions demanding withdrawal. Cypriot air traffic controllers have separately raised concerns about the growing frequency of unauthorized Turkish military aircraft and drone activity near critical flight routes and airports in the region. #Cyprus #Turkey #EasternMediterranean