7:10 ratio in U.S. military funding to Greece and Turkey

newspaper article illustration, ink & Letratone

Greece's "socialist" government under prime minister Andreas Papandreou was very exercised over its schizophrenic relationship with the United States and NATO.

Greece and its neighbour and ancient enemy Turkey were both NATO members, which on paper at least meant that they were allies. But the two countries were constantly on edge over territorial disputes and the interminable problem of Turkish occupied Cyprus. Turkey's armed forces massively outnumbered those of Greece which made the latter very nervous. But the west needed Turkey as a bulwark against both Communist and militant Islamic regimes on its borders.

All this was reflected in the relative amount of military aid each country received from the U.S.. It became a hot political issue, further compounded by Greece's threats to close down American military bases in the country.

There were torrents of invective in the media, massive protests in the streets and flurries of diplomatic activity. It all seems like a storm in an oozo glass now, but great stuff for journalists.