Greece, Japan, and Maritime Disputes – The Diplomat

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The timing of the event was not random. Greece’s relationship with Turkey is deteriorating and tensions are escalating dangerously due to their maritime disputes in the Aegean Sea and the eastern Mediterranean Sea. The dispute is complicated, and perceptions from each side are different. According to Turkey, for instance, everything starts back in 1923 and the Treaty of Lausanne, the main treaty between the two countries concerning the border delimitation and demarcation, including of the Aegean Sea. But the main issue in the last decades is the potential undersea resources of the maritime area and control of the waters and seabed.

Cyprus has gas for Europe. A decades-old conflict is keeping it untouched. – POLITICO

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In Europe’s frantic search to end its dependence on Russian energy, there’s an untapped resource: The waters around Cyprus.

Yet a decades-old conflict between Turkey, Cyprus and Greece — rooted in Turkey’s 1974 invasion of Cyprus — is stymying efforts to explore and extract any natural gas lying beneath the Mediterranean Sea.

Turkey wants a say in how any profits are made off the island’s riches, ensuring the benefits flow to the Turkish Cypriot community. Ankara also wants any gas in the region to run across its territory en route to Europe. Athens, meanwhile, supports plans to move gas via Cyprus and Greece.

Turkey and European Energy (In)Security – Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik

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The desire of the European Union (EU) to reduce its dependency on Russia for gas and diversify its sources of supply by turning to the resources of Central Asia, the Middle East, and the Eastern Mediterranean regions theoretically gives Turkey a major role in the EU’s diversification and energy security policy. However, this strategic role …

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Kyriakos Mitsotakis’ interview with Reuters news agency | Prime Minister Hellenic Republic

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“Greece will not tolerate aggressive behavior, revisionist rhetoric and actions which amount to violations of Greek sovereign rights and Greek sovereignty. I think it is up to Turkey to change its behavior. We’ve never been the ones pushing the boundary in terms of aggressiveness, but we are very confident that we have the ability to defend ourselves should the need arise. And we’re also very confident that we have allies that support us: the European Union, the United States.

I see no reason why Turkey should complain every time we argue that we are right, when we make the case that our differences need to be resolved based on International Law and that we simply cannot accept preposterous allegations pertaining to the sovereignty of Greek islands. Turkey should not be surprised when our allies, also within NATO, state the obvious: that we are right when it comes to this issue and that there’s no other way to look at it except for what we’re saying”.

As Turkey Chafes at Erdogan, He Gets Spikier Abroad – The New York Times

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President Recep Tayyip Erdogan canceled an appearance at the global climate talks over a perceived slight, part of a pattern of creating international dramas to bolster his domestic standing. ISTANBUL — The global climate summit in Glasgow was supposed to be a big moment for President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey. He was expected to …

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