Erdogan: Turkey will defend sovereign rights in Aegean, East Med

Turkey will defend its sovereign rights in the Aegean and the Eastern Mediterranean, the country's president Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Friday.

"We protect our rights in the Eastern Mediterranean, Cyprus and the Aegean in a dynamic way," Erdogan told a rally in Bursa, northwest Turkey. "If we fail to do so, we know very well what we will face in the future," he added.

Turkey is gearing up for local elections on March 31.