Turkey-Libya Maritime Deal 'Remains Null and Void,' Greek FM Says
Greece said the 2019 maritime accord ignores island rights and could unsettle regional security and the legal order, with the European Union backing its rejection.
- On Monday, Greek Foreign Minister Giorgos Gerapetritis delivered a joint statement on behalf of Greece, Bahrain, Cyprus, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, and the European Union at the United Nations, declaring the 2019 Turkey-Libya maritime memorandum "null and void."
- Libya's eastern parliament ratified the 2019 maritime boundaries deal on October 20, a move that revived regional objections to the accord and prompted the coordinated international response.
- Gerapetritis warned the agreement "raises serious concerns for regional security and stability" while disregarding geographical realities and island entitlements under UNCLOS, saying the memorandum "cannot serve as a lawful basis for maritime delimitation."
- Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan dismissed the criticism as lacking "legitimate basis," while Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis called the deal a "flagrant violation" of international law on Thursday.
- Greece has awarded a Chevron-led consortium a license to explore for gas off Crete, solidifying maritime claims, while prediction markets price a Greek-Turkish military clash at 9.1% by December 31, 2026.
115 Articles
115 Articles
The renewed discussion of the maritime delimitation agreement between Turkey and Libya has increased diplomatic activity in the Eastern Mediterranean. With Greece's initiative, three Arab countries have also become involved in the dispute, while a statement from Ankara has once again highlighted the differences of opinion in the region.
Arab states oppose Turkey-Libya accord
Egypt, Bahrain and the UAE aligned with Greece to denounce a Turkey-Libya maritime accord as a threat to regional security and international legal order. In a joint statement delivered by Greek Foreign Minister George Gerapetritis at the United Nations in New York on Monday, Greece and the three Arab countries said the maritime accord raised “serious concerns for regional security and stability” and could set a bad precedent by allowing “arbitra…
Al-Monitor
Three Arab states back Greece in dispute over Turkey-Libya maritime accord
ATHENS, Oct 27 (Reuters) - Egypt, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates aligned with Greece to denounce a Turkey-Libya maritime accord as a threat to regional security and international legal order in a long-standing dispute over sea borders in the eastern Mediterranean Sea.Libya's eastern parliamentlast week approved a maritime boundaries deal with Turkey, originally agreed in 2019, drawing swift condemnation from Greece and Cyprus, which say it infringes on their own maritime claims.
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