The issue of sovereign territory between historic rivals Türkiye and Greece flared again this week over the latter’s plans to establish a new marine park in the Aegean Sea, despite recent normalization efforts.
Ankara on Tuesday hit out at the Greek Foreign Ministry’s statement declaring the intention to unveil two new marine parks, one in the Aegean and the other in the Ionian Sea, ahead of the 9th Our Ocean Conference in Athens next week.
The marine park in the Aegean Sea will span 11 groups of deserted islands and islets from the west of the island of Milos, which sits north of Crete, to Nisyros, near the Datça peninsula of Turkish western Muğla province.
A marine park is a designated park that sets aside a certain area to achieve ecological sustainability and enable marine recreational activities, among others. A certain area would be reserved for scientific research in the region where ship traffic is controlled and there is no construction activity.
“We recommend Greece not to involve the outstanding Aegean issues, and the issues regarding the status of some islands, islets and rocks whose sovereignty has not been ceded to Greece by the international treaties, within the frame of its own agenda,” the Turkish Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
“We will not accept the fait accomplis that Greece may create on geographical features whose status is disputed,” it said.
“We would also like to advise third parties, including the EU, not to become a tool for Greece’s politically motivated attempts regarding environmental programs,” it said.
In response, the Greek Foreign Ministry accused Türkiye of “politicizing” environmental issues and said it “upholds the sovereignty and sovereign rights of the country within the framework of foreign policy principles.”
The statements come ahead of Greek Premier Kyriakos Mitsotakis’ visit to Ankara next month to reciprocate President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s landmark visit to Athens last December.
Greece and Türkiye, both NATO members, have long been at odds over issues including where their continental shelves start and end, energy resources, flights over the Aegean Sea, and policy toward the ethnically divided island of Cyprus.
They have taken high-profile steps to improve their ties in recent years, notably since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022.
During Erdoğan's visit to Greece three months ago, they agreed to boost trade, keep communication channels open, seek military confidence-building measures to reduce tension and work on issues that have kept them apart, notably in the Aegean Sea.
While official statements have been positive, the issues are longstanding and deep-rooted. Neither side expects the process to be without turbulence, particularly in the Aegean, where Turkish and Greek jets often scuffled until recently.
Earlier in January, Ankara and Athens reached respective deals with Washington for fighter jets, raising concerns about fresh skirmishes in the region.
Ankara has repeatedly warned its neighbor against entering an arms race with Türkiye, particularly on building a military presence on the disputed Aegean islands since the 1960s, in violation of postwar treaties.
Greece's purchase of F-35 fighter jets from the U.S. and the upping of defense budgets are meant to counter the protection of Turkish interests in the Eastern Mediterranean. Greece says it needs to defend the islands against a potential attack from Türkiye, but Turkish officials said continued militarization of the islands could lead to Ankara questioning their ownership.
For Mitsotakis, the demarcation of the continental shelf and economic exclusive zone is the only "difference" between the countries, but even if the issue isn't resolved, Türkiye and Greece "should be able to coexist and focus on a positive agenda."
Any normalization of relations would ease tensions in the Eastern Mediterranean and contribute to regional stability. Southern Mediterranean nations Libya and Egypt are also parties to the issue of continental shelves.
