GREECE's new socialist government was divided yesterday on the handling of the recent confrontation with Turkey over an islet in the Aegean.
The Greek Prime Minister, Mr Costas Simitis, wants sackings in the armed forces while his Defence Minister, Mr Gerassimos Arsenis, opposes any such move. Official sources said they were likely to clash at top level meetings this week.
The two men, who vied last month for the premiership, have had rocky relations for some time. Mr Simitis, in office for only three weeks and badly hit by the naval confrontation, wants the armed forces chief of staff, Admiral Christos Lyberis, to resign, saying his tactics led to the Greek retreat.
Mr Arsenis, Defence Minister for the past 2 1/2 years, wants Admiral Lyberis to stay, and if he insists, Mr Simitis may be forced to fire them both or face another embarrassing public retreat.
Ships from the Greek and Turkish navies faced each other threateningly in the eastern Aegean in support of rival claims to a rocky uninhabited islet. The US intervened and the immediate crisis was defused.
The parliamentary party of the Panhellenic Socialist Movement (Pasok) elected Mr Simitis late last month to replace the ailing Mr Andreas Papandreou as Prime Minister.
"We lost in the row with Turkey and nobody wants to take the responsibility," a Pasok official said. "The government's unity could be tested."
Admiral Lyberis was critical yesterday, saying bad politics was damaging the armed forces, which should be preparing for "more storms" with Turkey in coming months.
"Most EU and Nato allies took an equal distance and were hesitant to support us," Mr Simitis; said on Monday. "We must now win their support and reverse their equal distance policy."
AFP reports from Brussels:
The European Commission expressed "full solidarity with Greece" in the current feud. In a statement, the Commission said: "Tension must be reduced in a lasting way in the area and efforts made to re establish good neighbourly relations between Greece and Turkey." But it also expressed "full solidarity with Greece" in the dispute.