NATO ambassadors met in emergencysession today to discuss tension between members Greece and
Turkey over a disputed area of the Aegean Sea on the Western
Alliance's southern flank, Greek diplomatic sources said.
    They said no information had yet emerged from the meeting,
called after statements from both countries that they were
prepared to back rival oil exploration teams with warships.
    General Guven Ergenc, Secretary General of the Turkish
General Staff, said today the Turkish research ship Sismik 1,
escorted by an unspecified number of warships, would sail into
disputed waters in the Aegean Sea tomorrow morning.
    Greek Prime Minister Andreas Papandreou said "The military
readiness of our country is able now to give a very hard lesson
if our neighbours (Turkey) were to carry out military actions."
    The row erupted when the Greek government said last month
that it was taking control of a Canadian-led consortium which
was already producing oil off the Greek island of Thassos and
would drill in the same area after the takeover.
 REUTER
