"The current situation in the eastern Mediterranean is equivalent to playing with fire. Every little spark can lead to catastrophe," German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said after a meeting with his Greek counterpart Nikos Dendias in Athens Tuesday.

On the same day, Maas had also met Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu in Ankara.

"In both meetings in Athens as well as in Ankara I kept hearing that the only way to reach an understanding was to start a dialogue in which both differing standpoints were put on the table. No one wants to settle this conflict militarily, which would be absolute madness," Maas told a news conference after his shuttle diplomacy failed to deescalate the situation.

As India Narrative had reported earlier, Turkey has been making provocative moves in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Cypriot Economic Exclusion Zone, conducting seismic research and explorations within the Greek continental shelf, which has resulted in a highly volatile situation in the region.

The dispute has now entered a "very critical" phase.

"The situation is very risky, because in the end, whoever moves closer and closer to the abyss, can at some point fall down. That's a development which we want to avoid," he said.

The entire world understands it except for one man – Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Yesterday, he again warned Greece not to test his country's patience or courage.

"Turkey will take what is its right in the Mediterranean, in the Aegean and in the Black Sea. Just as we have no eyes over anyone's territory, sovereignty and interests, we will never compromise on what belongs to us. We are determined to do whatever is necessary in political, economic and military terms. We invite our interlocutors to get their act together and to avoid mistakes that will lead to their ruin," said Erdogan.

His comments came hours before European Union Ministers of Defence huddled in Berlin for a meeting where the "pressing situation" in the Eastern Mediterranean would dominate the proceedings.

On August 14, the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, had convened a meeting of the 27 European Union Member States where it was decided that "solidarity, de-escalation, and dialogue" would remain the key focus in the Eastern Mediterranean keeping in view the grave deterioration of the security situation in recent days.

Ministers had stressed in particular that recent naval mobilisations by Turkey do not contribute to finding any solutions. On the contrary, they will lead to greater antagonism and distrust. They create a heightened risk of dangerous incidents. Immediate de-escalation by Turkey was considered crucial.

"We are concerned about the situation in the eastern Mediterranean. What we need is de-escalation and dialogue. Turkey and Greece have both been important NATO Allies for many years. And we need to find a way to resolve the situation in the eastern Mediterranean, based on the spirit of Allied solidarity and international law, and I welcome the efforts by Germany to mediate to find a way forward. And I'm also personally regularly in contact with both Ankara and Athens. I spoke recently with the Greek Prime Minister Mitsotakis. And we continue to provide NATO as a platform for Allies to meet and discuss how to find the solution to this situation in eastern Mediterranean," Nato Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said ahead of an informal meeting with EU Defence Ministers.

However Turkey which the Greek Minister of Foreign Affairs Nikos Dendias says "eschews modern perceptions that govern states in the 21st century and lives and acts in the 19th century" is hell bent on escalating the dispute.

Last week, after discovering 320 billion cubic meters of natural gas reserves in the Black Sea, Erdogan had said that Turkey would accelerate its drilling activities in the Mediterranean Sea. The experts, meanwhile, see no reason for any celebrations.

"In the face of continued pressure due to the Covid-19 crisis, Turkey's economy, already struggling with a plummeting lira, a balance of payments deficit, high unemployment and declining growth, is expected to be the one of the hardest hit among the G20 economic powers, limiting Turkey's economic resources for its international ambitions. Even Turkey's much heralded Black Sea gas discoveries cannot save Turkey's woeful economic outlook, especially as it will take years and considerable investment before the gas becomes commercially viable," Simon A. Waldman, an associate fellow at the Henry Jackson Society and also the co-author of 'The New Turkey and Its Discontents' wrote in Israeli newspaper Hareetz.

Erdogan though, through his continued expansionist moves, would like the world to believe that his country is on its way to become a superpower..