Filenews 2 December 2025
By KOSTAS VENIZELOS
The big picture for the Americans is the maintenance of the balance between Greece and Turkey, two of their NATO partners, although their preference is always Ankara. However, for the American side, it is important for Greek-Turkish differences to exist to the point where they will not lead to conflict.
And in this context, from time to time there are attempts by Washington to... their two allies. And from time to time, when and when necessary, they intervene to avoid military conflict.
It is recalled that Kissinger intervened in 1974 to avoid a Greek-Turkish war, at a time, of course, when he winked at Ecevit to invade Cyprus. There were, as is well known, interventions both before 1974 and after.
All these references are made on the occasion of what the American ambassador to Ankara, Tom Barak, said in an interview with the correspondent of "Kathimerini" of Athens, Manolis Kostidis, whose positions sometimes provoke. This is because it is presented as expressing Turkish narratives in a provocative way. But also Ankara's positions. He identifies excessively, at times, with the Erdogan regime.
In this interview, therefore, President Trump's friend, the US ambassador to Ankara, said that he discussed Greek-Turkish relations with Donald Trump and "we wondered if we can act as a 'mortar', like the one that unites two bricks, to come closer in a new way, step by step. The time has come. It has to be done. A new regional order, a new way of cooperation is necessary. And we hope America can be a bridge." He also spoke about the Eastern Mediterranean forum without deliberately going into details, avoiding referring to the proposed versions: In the original European proposal, the Turkish one (which also includes the separatist entity, the pseudo-state) or the Greek one?
From what Mr. Barak said, it is clear that he announced initiatives on Greek-Turkish relations and Cyprus. And knowing what he claims, but above all how his boss, President Trump, works, these positions should sound the alarm in Athens and Nicosia. As for what may follow, in the event of intervention in Greek-Turkish relations and the Cyprus problem, this is something that anyone can suspect when one follows American practices (Ukraine, Gaza, etc.).
It is also interesting to see how the American ambassador sees the Cyprus problem. He considers it an "abscess", which will obviously have to be "cleaned up" at some point, so as not to hinder American plans in our region. He was asked whether Cyprus is important for the region and for solving the problems and replied: "Of course. You can't have an abscess in the center of an otherwise healthy body. Every part of this body needs to be healed. And Cyprus is a crucial part of it. Our hope is that it will be included in the solution."
We cannot know whether the American side considers that the Cyprus problem is hindering, at this stage, its plans and must intervene now. The point is that at some point, for a number of reasons, if the island of Cyprus is spotted on the radar of President Trump and his associates, then we will have a bad end. Because based on the practices he follows, almost through the "logic" of "what happened, done", he proceeds and imposes a "solution". In other words, to accept "the Turkish reality" on the island.
And because Trump seems to have a problem-solving patent, the possibility of a problem solver is chilling. As an example, the Ukrainian issue, to be part of the agreement, the legalization of the territories that have been forcibly occupied, militarily.
