Instead of Greece in an unsuspecting time applying its sovereign rights by expanding territorial waters and maritime zones, in Athens the policy of phobia and gray zones prevailed for decades, which today sank under Turkish threats and illegalities. While theories of “adjustment” were being concocted in Athens, on the other side Turkey was making moves to prevent the exercise of national sovereign rights under the UN Law of the Sea.
As main players in the international environment and also states in the region, they confirm that International Law covers Greece, it is Turkey that makes illegal leaps in the context of its expansiveness, disputing Greek islands, projecting the casus belli in any expansion of territorial waters, dividing maritime space with Libya, as if Greece, Cyprus and other states did not exist, intervening in the Southern Mediterranean, etc. In contrast to these, the segmental delimitation of the EEZ, the exclusion of islands, the refusal to delimit the Greece-Cyprus EEZ constitute an “adjustment”, which left open the space for Turkey to intervene and expand with the last Turkish-Libyan memorandum.
The overwhelming civil society in Greece-Cyprus realizes that the essential problem is not a technical issue. The problem is Turkish expansionism and a strategy is needed to deal with it. Turkey is not afraid of The Hague, nor gray zone theories… It is afraid of a deterrence strategy to deal with it. And we make it clear that Turkish expansionism is not being met with “barbaric Mongol” charades and other cheap fireworks, but with a rational strategy to avoid our submission because we cannot change Turkey. Turkey maintains and survives with an oppressive regime and with expansionism and we must deal with it as it is, avoiding any “adjustment” to Turkish illegalities and claims.
Even today, domestic views of those responsible for today’s dilemmas are presented, which are spent on individual technical issues, but diligently do not propose a strategy to deal with Turkish expansionism. Turkey disputes the islands’ right to maritime zones beyond their territorial waters, disputes Greece’s right to 12 nautical miles territorial waters, disputes sovereignty over Greek islands and islets that play a crucial role in a delimitation, does not accept the Convention for the Law of the Sea, but essentially claims half of the Aegean and sovereignty over Cyprus in the Southern Mediterranean.
In addition, the Turkish regime avoids anything that will force Athens to react forcefully, so step by step Turkish expansionism will continue. In a paradoxical way, the Turkish-Libyan memorandum brought Athens-Nicosia in front of reality. Therefore, we will either submit or counter it with a strategy of overthrowing it. There is no middle solution.
Kostas Mavridis, MEP DIKO (S&D), President of the Political Committee for the Mediterranean
