Greece, Cyprus, Egypt and EU say Turkey-Libya maritime deal is void
The statement follows ratification of the 2019 memorandum by Libya's House of Representatives. The signatories voiced "serious concerns" for regional security.
Archive image · Photo: Greece Ministry of Foreign Affairs / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0 (cropped and resized)
Greek Foreign Minister Giorgos Gerapetritis on Monday read out a joint statement on behalf of Greece, Egypt, Cyprus, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates and the European Union. It said the 2019 Turkish-Libyan memorandum delimiting maritime zones in the Mediterranean "remains null and void and without legal effect" and runs counter to international law.
The statement follows a vote by Libya's House of Representatives, which recently ratified the document. That decision "raises serious concerns for regional security and stability" but does not alter the legal situation, the statement said. It added that the memorandum "ignores the geographical reality and the rights of all the coastal states involved".
The signatories cited the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea and warned that accepting such bilateral deals would set a dangerous precedent. Euronews did not report any response from Turkey or Libya.