42 Europe The EconomistAugust 1st 2020
O
n patmos, asmall Greek island popular
with jet-setters, flags flew at half-mast
on July 24th. Church bells tolled every hour
in protest against Turkey’s transformation
of the Hagia Sophia, in Byzantine times the
grandest cathedral in Christendom, from
museum to mosque. That was not the is-
landers’ only concern. Coastguards, to-
gether with almost all the Greek navy and
air force, were placed on high alert after
Turkey announced on July 21st that the
Oruc Reis, a drilling ship, would carry out
ten days of exploration for oil and gas in a
disputed area of the south Aegean.
The dispute has simmered for years.
Turkish drilling ships periodically sail into
exploration blocks off Cyprus to underline
Turkish demands for a stake in potentially
lucrative gasfields. This time the target was
Kastellorizo, a far-flung Greek island oppo-
site Kas, a pleasant resort town on the Turk-
ish mainland. Tourist ferries between the
two have been suspended this year because
of covid-19. A couple of warships now
cruise the area instead. Fighter jets occa-
sionally split the sky above.
The two natocountries have had their
share of dust-ups of late. Earlier this year
Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan
encouraged tens of thousands of migrants
to breach the border with Greece. More re-
cently the conversion of the Hagia Sophia
saw the country’s top mufti delivering a
sermon while clutching an Ottoman
sword. The border crisis helped Mr Erdo-
gan distract public opinion at home from
an air strike that killed dozens of Turkish
troops inside Syria (see Middle East and Af-
rica section.) The reconquest of the Hagia
Sophia came amid the economic fallout
from the coronavirus crisis. Both were also
intended to put pressure on Greece.Turkey and Greece are staking compet-
ing claims to the waters between them, and
the energy riches that may lie beneath the
waves. Greece holds that its islands, even
the smallest, have continental shelves
where it has the sole right to drill. The eu
and America agree. The Eisenhower, an
American aircraft-carrier, accompanied by
12 smaller vessels, recently held a joint ex-
ercise with a Greek frigate and several
Greek f-16 fighter jets off the island of
Crete. Meanwhile, France threatened to
slap Turkey with sanctions.
Turkey has long refused to recognise
the economic zones around the Greek is-
lands hugging its shores. An island like
Kastellorizo, only a couple of kilometres
offshore from Turkey, should not be able to
generate 40,000 square km of maritime ju-
risdiction, says an official in Ankara. To
make its point, Mr Erdogan’s government
last year signed an agreement with Libya’s
un-backed government which it says gives
Turkey the right to waters off Crete and oth-er Greek islands. Greek officials say the
deal is not worth the paper it is written on,
and suggest they are close to signing a com-
peting agreement with Egypt.
Maritime law does not offer clear sol-
utions in the Mediterranean. “Good claims
could be made either way,” says Brenda
Shaffer, an energy expert at the Atlantic
Council, adding that such disputes usually
end up having to be settled by force or by
agreement.
Agreement does seem possible. After a
phone call between Angela Merkel, the
German chancellor, and Mr Erdogan, Tur-
key said on July 28th that it would suspend
plans to drill off Kastellorizo and give talks
a chance. The Oruc Reisstayed tied up in
port. In return, Kyriakos Mitsotakis, the
Greek prime minister, offered to meet the
Turks in Berlin, if calm prevails in the Ae-
gean for the rest of the summer. That is
hardly guaranteed. But Mrs Merkel’s will-
ingness to get involved in one of southern
Europe’s knottiest issues is a good sign. 7ATHENS, BODRUM AND PATMOS
Turkey and Greece avoid coming to
blows, for the momentThe AegeanMuddying the
waters
Athens
PatmosCrete KastellorizoAegean
SeaGreekEEZ TurkishclaimTurkishEEZMediterraneanSeaKas
GREECETURKEY
EGYPTCYPRUSLIBYABodrum150 kmH
e was devoutas ateenagerand
irreverent as an adult, but always
kind, and bequeathed his fortune to
charity. She was large, loud, and in her
own words ugly to others but beautiful to
herself with her blonde wig, improbable
breasts and a tongue as sharp as a nettle.
He was Seyfi Dursunoglu, a bureaucrat.
She was the Grumpy Virgin, the persona
he began to inhabit in the 1970s, in small
clubs at first and then on national tv, on
her way to becoming Turkey’s most
beloved drag queen. They were one and
the same person, and died on July 17th, attheageof87.
Being gay or trans in Muslim-majority
Turkey has always been hard. But homo-
phobia has now become policy. Over the
past month alone, Turkey’s president,
Recep Tayyip Erdogan, called the lgbt
movement a “cursed perversion” and an
attempt “to poison young minds”, while
his officials forced Netflix to cancel a
new show because it featured a gay char-
acter and mused about withdrawing
from a convention on violence against
women because it contained references
to sexual minorities.
The paradox is that many of Turkey’s
most famous singers and entertainers
have been gay or trans. Some of them still
appear on tv. Mainstream culture in
Turkey continues to welcome gay celeb-
rities, so long as they do not discuss their
sexuality openly.
The Grumpy Virgin outlasted a dozen
prime ministers. But as Turkey’s politics
have turned more Islamic and more
inward under Mr Erdogan, she seemingly
failed to keep up with the times. In 2007
the media watchdog banished her from
the airwaves. Turkish tvshows these
days are increasingly populated by Otto-
man warriors and army commandos, and
news programmes by martyrs, traitors
and terrorists. Male ministers with long
faces regularly vow to protect the nation
from foreign plots. Turkey, it seems, is
fast losing touch with its feminine side.Thequeenisdead
Tu r ke yISTANBUL
Turkey mourns a revered drag artistCross but dressy