February 11, 2003
When you've lost Greece, you've lost everybody
Well, the Axis of Weasels have finally managed to do the impossible. They've actually managed the foreign policy coup of putting Greece and Turkey on the same side of an issue. Greece has now come out supporting Turkey's invocation of Nato Article IV. The Neo-Carolingian empire's foreign policy is so inept as to put Greece and Turkey, Europe's Hutus and Tutsis, on the same side, and put Greece(which makes anti-Americanism a spectator sport) on the same side as the United States. Maybe I should call France and Germany the new Holy Roman Empire--that is the only way I can explain such incompetence.
Posted by John Bono at February 11, 2003 11:59 AM | TrackBackI was ruminating on the NATO row as I read about it in the Washington Post this morning, and this very same thought suddenly hit me. The Franco/German initiative is looking less and less and less like a brilliant, malevolent diplomatic counter-offensive, as Steven den Beste originally feared, and more and more and more like yet another colossal screwup by the Weasels. One wonders if Chirac and Schroeder ought to be let out of the house without somebody accompanying them to hold their hands...
Posted by: Joe on February 11, 2003 06:46 PMI am not at all surprised at Athens' move.
three points:
1) In case no one has been paying attention, over the past five years Greece has undergone a fantastic diplomatic, political, economic, fiscal change for the better. As a result, its opinions and interests in its region are being constantly taken into account by its American, NATO and EU partners.
2) While there seems to be an apparent irony to Greece supporting Turkey, thre is no irony for those following Greek - Turkish relations in recent years. Greece has not only been one of the strongest supporters of Turkey's EU bid, but also the least patronizing. does Greece have a self interest? Of course, but that interest is bringing and keeping Turkey in as many western, multi-lateral and rule-of law regimes as possbile. That's good for both Greece and Turkey.
3) Lastly the swipe about "anti-Americanism" in Greece is, given the recent Franco-German stance, funny but not accurate given the context. Greece was, for forty to fifty years, a client state of the US. It suffered a US backed military dictatorship, it witnessed the invasion of Cyprus by Turkey with 100% U.S. weapons and nary a peep from Washington. It witnessed the singling out and demonizing of the co-Orthodox Serbs in a needed, but let's be honest, simplistic resposne to the civil wars in former Yugoslavia and after.
Compare this to France, which owes its very existance to massive amounts of US blood, and Germany, which as a prostate and defeated state was rehabilitated by the US into the world of nations.
Even so, Greeks on the street and in political leadership are arguably more supporter of America than many other Europeans.
IE the Greeks have occassionaly bitched, with and without cause, but they have never been as duplictious, violent or damaging as Paris or Berlin.
[Even during Clinton's visit to Athens, which drew a lot of press for a few anti-American, saw less protests than his visit to turkey. The difference was that in Turkey the demonstrators were truncheoned in massive numbers, as reported by the wire services at the time.]
Posted by: George S on February 11, 2003 08:54 PM"Germany, which as a **prostate** and defeated state was rehabilitated by the US into the world of nations."
Hehe. Was that intentional?
Posted by: Socko on February 17, 2003 07:23 PM
