General – Politics
Türkiye said on Thursday it opposed Greece’s unilateral activities in energy fields south of Crete with a consortium led by U.S. major Chevron as a violation of international law and good neighbourly relations.
Athens responded that its policies abide international law.
The Chevron-led consortium recently signed exclusive lease agreements to look for natural gas off southern Greece, expanding U.S. presence in the eastern Mediterranean.
“We oppose this unlawful activity, which is being attempted in violation of the 2019 Memorandum of Understanding on Maritime Jurisdiction between Libya and our country,” the Türkiye Defence Ministry said at a press briefing.
It said the activity, while not directly impacting Türkiye’s continental shelf, also violated Libya’s maritime jurisdiction that was declared to the United Nations in May last year.
“We continue to provide the necessary support to the Libyan authorities to take action against these unilateral and unlawful activities by Greece,” the ministry said.