Greece on Wednesday renewed its calls for Libya to scrap its maritime jurisdiction deal with Türkiye.
The Greek Foreign Ministry noted that the agreement was at the top of the agenda during a meeting with Acting Foreign Minister of Libya’s Tripoli-based GNA government, Taher Salem Al Baour, and Greek Foreign Minister George Gerapetritis.
Gerapetritis underlined "the need to respect International Law, including the International Law of the Sea, and reiterated the Greek and European position regarding the invalid and non-existent Turkish-Libyan memorandum," according to the ministry.
The ministry also announced that the Greek and Libyan foreign ministries agreed to start the process for the delimitation of the maritime borders.
Libya’s LANA news agency said the ministers "exchanged views on the issue of demarcating maritime borders and exclusive economic zones related to the maritime areas adjacent to each other in the Eastern Mediterranean.”
In the fall of 2019, Türkiye and Libya signed a deal setting marine jurisdictions, rejecting unilateral and illegal activities by regional countries and international firms, and protecting the rights of both countries.
The deal was registered by the U.N. in October 2020.
Insisting on its maximalist claims, Athens has repeatedly announced the deal is "invalid ... non-existing,” and systematically has pushed Libya to undo it.
Türkiye is a key actor in the region and seeks to expand its clout in Libya. Turkish intelligence chief Ibrahim Kalın has recently paid a visit to the country, while Ankara also reached out to Haftar for more cooperation, marking a shift in its Libya policy.
Türkiye seeks the approval of the Tobruk-based parliament, aligned with Haftar, for a 2019 maritime delimitation deal with the U.N.-recognized government in Tripoli.
Greece and Egypt have reportedly lobbied Haftar against the agreement, citing competing claims in the Eastern Mediterranean and potential infringement on their maritime zones. The deal is seen by Ankara as a strategic win in asserting Türkiye’s rights in the region.
