Greek minister: EU must 'show its teeth' over Turkey

The European Union must "show its teeth" by imposing tough economic sanctions against Turkey, if the country refuses to remove its military vessels and drill ships from waters in the eastern Mediterranean, Greece's European Affairs minister said on Thursday.

Speaking to members of the EU's Foreign Affairs Committee in Brussels, Miltiadis Varvitsiotis said Greece was not pursuing a military response to the Turkish aggression.

"That is why we asked our military people, our armed forces to restrain themselves," he said.

Greece and Turkey have faced off against each other in recent weeks as Turkish survey vessels and drill ships continue to prospect for gas in waters where Greece and Cyprus claim exclusive economic rights.

Greek and Turkish armed forces have been conducting military exercises in the area in a show of muscle-flexing to underscore each side’s resolve.

European Union members Greece and Cyprus accuse Turkey of violating international law and of “gunboat diplomacy.”

Turkey insists it’s defending its rights and those of the breakaway Turkish Cypriots on ethnically split Cyprus to their rightful share of the area’s potential gas deposits.