“Her reactions Turkey they have no basis in EU and international law,” said the representative of the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs Lana Zohiou responding to the announcement issued earlier today by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkey regarding the Greek Maritime Spatial Planning.
“The map update of Marine Spatial Planning of Greece on the platform of the European Commission was done in accordance with Directive 2014/89, the international law of the sea and the bilateral agreements concluded by our country” also commented Ms. Zohiou, pointing out that where there has been no bilateral delimitation of an Exclusive Economic Zone, the outermost potential limits are drawn according to the middle line”.
“Greece’s positions on the matter have been repeatedly expressed both bilaterally and within the framework of the European Union and the United Nations Organization. Turkey’s reactions have no basis in EU and international law,” concluded the representative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in her announcement.
In its announcement, the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs argued that “Greece’s perceptions of the EEZ and its efforts to legitimize the outer limits of its continental shelf that have not been demarcated with its neighbors by incorporating them into the FTA map are doomed to failure in advance and are unilateral steps that violate international law.”
The announcement of the Turkish Foreign Ministry in detail
“Turkey is closely following the Maritime Spatial Planning (MSP) works, which are being carried out in accordance with the recommendations of the relevant UN bodies. As is well known, our country announced its national MSW on April 16, 2025 and communicated it to UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission on June 12, 2025.
The website of the European Commission’s FTA Platform found that the Greek map, which violates Turkey’s maritime zones of jurisdiction in the Aegean and Eastern Mediterranean, has been updated with a reference to the “competent Greek authorities”.
It is becoming clear that Greece, which continues to ignore the fundamental principles of international law of the sea, is attempting to impose through the EU – using the DMP charter – an exclusive economic zone (EEZ) in the Eastern Mediterranean, which it has not officially declared. Our country rejects this legally unfounded attempt to create fait accompli.
On 18 March 2020, Turkey communicated to the UN in its entirety its legal position regarding the outer limits of the continental shelf in the Eastern Mediterranean. In this regard, the so-called EEZ depicted on the Greek DMP map in the Eastern Mediterranean lies within the Turkish continental shelf.
Greece’s notions of the EEZ and its attempts to legitimize the outer limits of its continental shelf that have not been demarcated with its neighbors by incorporating them into the FTA map are doomed to failure in advance and are unilateral steps that violate international law.”
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