Greece And Egypt Oppose Maritime Deals Between Turkey and Libya
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Roshan Amiri
- . October 10, 2022
- . Update: October 10, 2022 6:23 pm
The Egyptian and Greek government are opposing the maritime and gas agreements between the Libya’s Tripoli based government and Turkey. The foreign ministers of the respective Middle Eastern nations have pointed out that the agreements are actually illegal as the Libyan administration’s mandate has expired.
At a recent press conference, Greek Foreign minister Nikos Dendias and his Egyptian counterpart Sameh Shoukry, had pointed out the fact that the deals are disputed. Egypt and Greece have solid trade relations and support each other’s endeavours on maritime deals as well.
At the press conference, the Greek FM said, “Turkey seeks once again to take advantage of the turbulent situation in Libya in order to further destabilise the Mediterranean region and establish regional hegemony. I was glad to see that all key stake holders as well as the European Union have publicly denounced those plans. No one can build new facts on the bases of illegal and illegitimate actions, no one can ignore geography, no one can create a virtual world.”
Greece and Egypt do not see eye to eye with Turkey. Egypt and Greece, along with Cyprus — are a trio and in loggerheads with Turkey. All three are said to have signed maritime border agreements with the aim of facilitating the exploitation of large natural gas fields in the eastern Mediterranean.
As a NATO member, Turkey has for years been seeking to muscle in on efforts led by its three rivals and Israel to turn the region into an energy hub. Ankara has earned stern rebukes from the United States and the EU for engaging in illegal gas exploration in Cyprus’s exclusive economic zone.
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Mr. Dendias said his talks with Mr Shoukry focused on the memoranda of understanding signed last week between Turkey and Abdul Hamid Dbeibah, the leader of the Tripoli-based government.
The agreements include the joint exploration of hydrocarbon reserves in Libya’s offshore waters and on its territory. Mr. Dendias said the agreements were a threat to regional stability and infringed on Greek waters.
He noted that “the mandate of the Tripoli government has expired, and if I may say so, long ago. So, it does not, I repeat it does not, represent the Libyan people.”
