How threatening are the Al Watiya air base and the naval base in the port of Misrata
of Fotis Sioubouras – SOURCE: PARASKINIO
Under the pretext of protecting the already existing Turkish facilities in Libya, but also the oil companies that are going to be developed on Libyan soil and in the sea, Ankara appears to be proceeding, and indeed at an extremely fast pace, in the modernization of the two main military facilities it maintains on the territory of Libya, the “Al Watiya” airbase in the west of the country and the naval base in the port of Misrata.
The most important for Turkish geostrategic interests in the region and at the same time the one that poses the most dangerous threat to our country is the “Al Watiya” air base. However, the second military installation maintained by Turkey in Libya, the naval base at the port of Misrata, poses a significant threat to Greek interests.
With “stocks”
This is a sea area considered to be the richest in hydrocarbon reserves in the Libyan Sea, which will now be controlled by companies of Turkish interests. And this particular base has been almost completely upgraded by the Turkish navy, while it is already used for docking and resupplying surface units as well as submarines of the Turkish fleet. Its pivotal position in the east of Libya, south of Greece and next to Egypt, constitutes a threat not only to our country, but also to Cairo. It is considered that the activity of Turkish companies and the drilling that Ankara is going to carry out in the area will give an alibi to the Erdogan government, so that the presence of Turkish ships becomes permanent, supposedly to cover the relevant security needs.
Prepared with secret units!
But at the same time and in the context of preparations for “war operations”, the Turkish president plans to develop a specially trained secret unit linked to the MIT intelligence service.
The unit is a relatively new tool in the arsenal of Turkey’s intelligence service and will be used for the first time in mounting a military-style covert operation against a Western country.
The plan includes several options, ranging from sabotaging Greek islands near the Turkish mainland to raising the Turkish flag on one or more uninhabited islets and rock formations, as well as conducting provocations.
The scripts
The Ministry of National Defense, according to information, has worked out during the last two years a multitude of scenarios to deal with the Turkish threat, since, as the competent services estimate, Ankara’s intentions include placing as a permanent force at the “Al Watiya” air base 6 -8 F-16 fighters, with also a KC-35 flying tanker stationed there in times of Greek-Turkish crisis, with the aim of increasing the range. Some critical military installations of our country are expected to be found within the range of the Turkish fighter jets, both in Crete, e.g. 115 PM in Souda or the S-300 base in Tympaki, as well as in the Peloponnese, such as the 117 P.M. in Andravida, the 116 P.M. in Araxos and the 120th Air Training Wing in Kalamata.
The “Spear”
In this context, it is no coincidence that from Tuesday 11 to Thursday 13 October the Navy carried out a large exercise in the sea area south of the Peloponnese. This is the second part of the “Spear” exercise, which has as its basic scenario the countering of an aerial threat and for this reason, among other things, foresees the realization of anti-aircraft fire with live fire from the ships of the Fleet.
At the same time, the Ministry of National Defense, in collaboration with the Ministry of Defense of Egypt, is intensifying their cooperation in the aeronautical sector even more, under the weight of the new data due to the illegal Turkish-Libyan pact.
Indicatively, it should be noted that the conduct of the large aeronautical exercise “Medusa”, which in terms of its main core is implemented with the participation of the E.D. of Greece and Egypt, this year it is going to be redesigned and redefined in terms of its objectives and purposes, in order to incorporate the response to the new threat that has arisen for the two countries from the expected strengthening of the Turkish military presence in Libya. The “Medusa” exercise has been held every year since 2010 between Greece and Egypt, but also with the participation of forces from third countries, such as France and Cyprus.
