Tensions between the countries – on the eve of the expected meeting between Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis between these NATO partner countries.
Apparently Greece and Turkey want to talk again – at the highest level. Starting Monday (09.02.26) the “Supreme Council of Greece-Turkey Cooperation” will meet in Ankara.
If all goes according to plan, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis will also be present at the table. There is also the possibility of a special meeting between the two leaders on another day.
After a difficult and conflict-ridden period in the Eastern Mediterranean, the High Cooperation Council was established in 2010. It has yet to achieve any major success. However, the Council tries to promote a positive agenda between the two NATO partners, especially in the areas of economy and tourism. But it has only met five times so far, the last meeting being held in Athens in December 2023.
“Turkey makes unilateral territorial demands and claims that have no legal basis and cannot be a serious topic of debate,” Konstantinos Filis, director of research at the Athens Institute of International Relations, explained to DW at the time. “Greece expects Turkey to always fulfill its demands and make concessions,” countered Fuat Aksu, a political scientist at Yildiz Technical University in Istanbul.
Navtex, a new point of debate
Not much has changed in the Aegean Sea since then. Adding to the tensions is another sticking point: Last Thursday, Turkey used the maritime navigation system “Navtex” to warn of security risks and Greek military activities. There have been similar warnings in the past.
Ultimately, it is a question of authority in the Aegean: Who has the right to claim responsibility for security issues? Athens is talking about an illegal attempt by its neighbor to expand its territorial waters. A “new Turkish provocation” is what the well-known Greek weekly newspaper “To Vima” considers this.
From the Turkish perspective, this is simply a routine matter, in line with current legislation. But it could be more than that: according to the pro-government newspaper Türkiye: “Navtex has caused panic in Greece and changed the status quo in the Aegean.”
For Greek Prime Minister Mitsotakis, the Navtex dispute means even more pressure from the right. “Turkey is grabbing half of the Aegean, but our government sees no reason to worry,” complains Kyriakos Velopoulos, chairman of the right-wing populist Greek Solution (EL) party, which according to polls has reached third place in terms of voter support.
Endless strife despite the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea
For decades, Greece and Turkey have been fighting over the continental shelf off the Turkish coast, the exploitation of raw materials and a possible expansion of territorial waters in the Aegean. As part of its current military doctrine “Blue Homeland”, Turkey also claims maritime territories of more than 450.000 square kilometers off its coast.
The 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea serves as a legal compass in such cases, although Turkey has not signed it. But it could be applied: according to the prevailing opinion of lawyers, this treaty reflects existing customary international law – and is therefore binding even on those who have not signed it.
No deal on the horizon
Under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, any state can in principle define its territorial waters, which extend up to 12 nautical miles. But there is one important exception: In cases of unclear boundaries or overlaps, the parties involved must reach a bilateral agreement. But the agreement between Greece and Turkey is still pending.
As early as 1995, the Turkish parliament had declared the expansion of Greek territorial waters in the Aegean Sea a “cause for war.” Because in such a case, the Aegean would become a kind of Greek internal sea.
In 2021, the Athens government extended its territorial waters to 12 nautical miles in the Ionian Sea towards Italy. Today, Greece clearly reserves the right to extend its territorial waters to the Aegean Sea as well, Defense Minister Nikos Dendias recently told the Athens-based Open TV station.
The International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague is considered the final arbiter in all matters of international law. But this United Nations body does not act on its own initiative. Both Greece and Turkey would have to submit a joint request to authorize the court to mediate. This has been debated since 1976. So far without success.
