Renewed tension in Greek-Turkish relations over EU maritime map

Тensions in Greek-Turkish relations have resurfaced after Ankara sharply criticised an EU Maritime Spatial Planning (MSP) map, which Turkey claims “legitimises” Greece’s positions on maritime zones in the Aegean and Eastern Mediterranean.

The spokesperson of the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Öncü Keçeli, accused Athens of seeking, through the EU’s MSP platform, to incorporate a map that “violates the Turkish continental shelf” and present it as acceptable at EU level.

Keçeli recalled that Ankara had already published its national MSP policy on 16 April 2025 and submitted it to the UNESCO Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission on 12 June 2025. He argued that the recent update of the EU platform with a Greek map, “which refers to maritime rights that Greece has not officially proclaimed”, represents a “unilateral and invalid initiative”.

According to the Turkish side, Athens is attempting to use the MSP map to “promote through the EU” its positions on the median line, on an unproclaimed Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and, more broadly, on an “expansion of Greek sovereignty in the Eastern Mediterranean”.

“Greece continues to ignore the basic principles of international maritime law,” the spokesperson claimed, portraying the Greek stance as incompatible with the principles of international legality.

Keçeli reiterated that Turkey submitted a complete file to the UN Secretary-General on 18 March 2020, containing the coordinates of the Turkish continental shelf in the Eastern Mediterranean.

According to Ankara, the Greek MSP map “depicts a non-existent and unilateral Exclusive Economic Zone”, which “overlaps the Turkish continental shelf”, while Athens’ attempt to “legitimise through mapping” boundaries that have not been agreed with neighbouring states “falls outside international legality”.

The Turkish side argues that Greece is seeking to assert maritime zone rights through EU technical tools without prior delimitation with Turkey or other coastal states, something that constitutes “a unilateral and binding tactic” at the expense of Turkish rights.

Although Athens has not yet officially commented on the Turkish statement, diplomatic sources emphasise that MSP maps do not create or bind sovereign rights and that Greece follows EU procedures. Greek sources add that the Turkish criticism is part of a broader strategy by Ankara to revise longstanding positions on the Aegean and the Eastern Mediterranean, shifting the discussion from international law to bilateral arrangements under pressure.

Sources on the Greek side also underline that Greece’s policy is grounded in the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), in its bilateral delimitation agreements with Italy and Egypt, and its established position that “islands generate full effect regarding continental shelf and EEZ”. They stress that EU spatial planning tools are technical in nature and do not replace international law procedures or bilateral delimitation agreements between states.

Greece and Turkey remain locked in a decades-long dispute over maritime boundaries in the Eastern Mediterranean, primarily concerning the extent of their continental shelves and exclusive economic zones (EEZs), with Ankara rejecting Greece’s claim that its numerous islands grant it broad sea rights under UNCLOS, while Athens accuses Turkey of violating international law through seismic surveys and drilling in contested waters.

The diplomatic dispute comes at a time when Athens and Ankara are trying to maintain a framework of “managed de-escalation” through the High-Level Cooperation Council, the dialogue on a “positive agenda”, and confidence-building measures.

However, issues such as maritime zones, the continental shelf, search-and-rescue operations and the interpretation of international law remain deeply contested and capable of triggering a rapid escalation, especially when transferred to EU platforms with a strong political charge.

Diplomatic analysts note that the dispute over the MSP map is not merely about a technical EU tool but touches upon the core of the long-standing Greek-Turkish disagreement over maritime claims.

Caption: Soldiers march during a military parade marking a Greek national holiday in Thessaloniki, northern Greece, 28 October 2025. EPA/ACHILEAS CHIRAS