Marine park decision becomes a hot topic in Greek press

Turkey's declaration of two regions at the center of maritime jurisdiction disputes in the Aegean and Eastern Mediterranean as "Marine National Parks" has found wide repercussions in Greece. With the Presidential Decree published in the Official Gazette, the area covering the waters off Çanakkale and Gökçeada in the North Aegean, as well as the Fethiye-Kaş waters on the Muğla-Antalya line, have been placed under protected status.

It is stated that the North Aegean Marine National Park created by the decision extends along the line between the islands of Lemnos and Samothrace, while the Fethiye-Kaş Marine National Park extends to the waters between Rhodes and Kastellorizo. In the Greek press, the decision was evaluated as a move by Ankara to make its theses regarding maritime jurisdiction visible on the same platform through an environmental protection step.

The Greek publication To Vima interpreted Turkey's decision as a diplomatic response to the marine parks and Maritime Spatial Planning steps Athens is planning in the South Aegean. The report assessed that Ankara is highlighting its thesis that islands do not have sovereign rights in areas exceeding 6 nautical miles and that the continental shelf should be determined based on the mainlands of the two countries, alongside this protection status.

LEGAL OBJECTION FROM ATHENS

The Athens administration, meanwhile, reacted to the decision by arguing that the declared lines intersect with Greece's continental shelf and international waters. The Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs claimed that, according to international maritime law, no country can unilaterally create a protection zone in high seas areas outside its own national jurisdiction limits.

Greek sources state that the inclusion of the vast area between Kastellorizo and Rhodes is also controversial in terms of environmental oversight. On the Turkish side, this step is read as a message that there will be no step back in the maritime jurisdiction disputes in the Aegean and Eastern Mediterranean.

The timing of the decision is also being closely monitored in Athens. The Greek press pointed out that the declarations coincide with the French company Meridiem joining the Greece-Cyprus electricity interconnection project and the legislative process Athens is preparing against the Blue Homeland concept. It is assessed that diplomatic traffic in the region may increase with the NAVTEX announcements and cable-laying activities expected in the autumn.

News Source: 12punto