Erdogan visited Greece for the first time in six years and agreed on friendship

Problem waters

Greece and Turkey define the width of territorial waters at 6 nautical miles (11 km). Most of the Aegean islands belong to Greece and are located off the Turkish coast, which does not allow Ankara to expand its sea and air borders. Athens is bidding to extend its borders to 12 miles, citing the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). Turkey has not signed it and is threatening Greece with war if it expands its territorial waters, and is demanding that Athens stop the “militarization” of the islands – the countries have been teetering on the brink of open conflict since at least 1996. In 2020, disagreements almost led to an armed clash over geological exploration by the Turkish vessel Oruç Reis in the Aegean Sea. The Greek army is on high alert. France came out for Athens. The NATO leader, Washington, was able to “extinguish” the situation.

Ankara and Athens also cannot agree on Cyprus, divided since 1974: the north is controlled by the unrecognized Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), the south is controlled by the internationally recognized Republic of Cyprus, inhabited by Greeks. Greece demands the unification of the island and the withdrawal of 40,000 Turkish troops. Türkiye refuses and wants recognition of the TRNC. The problem is compounded by the discovery of significant gas reserves in the island’s territorial waters. Ankara does not recognize the sovereignty of the Greeks over the fields, considers the licenses they issued illegal, and Turkish drilling ships have been operating off the northern coast of Cyprus since 2019.