Greek planes harass Turkish fighters in Aegean

The statement by Gul came after Greek charges over the past weeks that Turkish fighters were violating Greek air space over the Aegean. Turkey denies there is any violation and the tension stems from a dispute over the limits of Greek air space.

Gul said the Turkish F-16s were flying as part of a NATO maneuver and added that Turkey immediately notified NATO’s AWACS plane in the area about the harassment by Greek planes.

The tension over the Aegean comes weeks before a European Union summit in mid-December that will decide whether long-delayed accession talks between the union and Turkey should start.

Greece has been a strong supporter of Turkey’s membership but repeated Greek accusations have cast doubts over whether this support would still be in place at the December 17 summit.

Gul said Turkey was trying to develop its relations with neighboring Greece in all aspects and "sincerely wishes that disagreements concerning the Aegean will be resolved in a way that will not lead to tension."

"We want our Greek friends to favorably respond to our wish in this sensitive period that we are passing through and to take necessary measures to prevent unfortunate events," Gul said in his written statement.

The foreign minister phoned his Greek counterpart Petros Moliviatis to discuss the tension, news reports said.

Gul said he had instructed two Turkish ambassadors, who are in charge of conducting exploratory talks with the Greek side, to tell Greek authorities of solution efforts undertaken by Turkey.