Prolonged national "retreat": Turkish frigate "blocked" the Abeille Marengo, threats by Admiral Tatlıoğlu

Radio communication between Turkish and Greek naval forces east of Karpathos took place within the framework of the Great Sea Interconnector project in the South Aegean, which provides for the laying of a submarine electricity cable between Greece and Cyprus. During communications regarding the activities of the French research vessel "Abeille Marengo" in the area, a Turkish frigate claimed that the vessel was within Turkey's continental shelf and stated that it had received permission to continue its voyage. The Greek frigate "Limnos", in its radio response, stressed that the "Abeille Marengo" was within the Greek continental shelf and was conducting its activities in accordance with the NAVTEX issued by Athens.

The radio communication, in which the parties expressed their positions regarding their respective maritime jurisdictions, took place in a calm tone and did not lead to tension, while the Hellenic Armed Forces are closely monitoring the movements of the Turkish naval units while maintaining their level of operational readiness. However, by all appearances, someone gave the Turks courage, and they are demanding "permits" for research in Greek waters. And in this regard, reasonable questions arise. Did the Greek government underbid on national issues or not?

The GSI project is an energy venture aiming to connect the electricity grids of Greece and Southern Cyprus via a submarine cable, with the European Union having committed to allocate 658 million euros to support it, which is expected to cost over 2 billion euros and foresees future expansion to Israel. The French-owned research vessel "Abeille Marengo" set sail from Heraklion on a mission to meticulously map the seabed between Korakia in Crete and Cyprus to examine the geological structure and natural obstacles, areas that have reignited the long-standing dispute between Greece and Turkey. Greece and Cyprus reacted to the Turkish NAVTEX of November 10, with the Heraklion station declaring the announcement invalid as originating from an unauthorized station, while Turkey claims that the survey is being conducted with its permission and within its continental shelf under international law, in contrast to Athens, which considers that the route falls within the Greek EEZ and continental shelf.

Reactions

In the political arena, retired Lieutenant General and head of the national defense team of the Niki party, Giannis Intzes, argued that Greece has retreated nine times against Turkey over the past seven years following the 2019 Turkish-Libyan memorandum. According to him, the steps of retreat include the continuation of confidence-building measures, the lack of a sufficient reaction to the Turkish document submitted to the UN in 2020, the suspension of GSI works off Kasos in 2024, Turkey's submission of a Maritime Spatial Planning Map to UNESCO in 2025, the declaration of marine national parks in 2026, the delimitation agreement with Egypt in 2020 where in his estimation maritime zones were "gifted", the clause in the agreement with Chevron-Helleniq Energy in 2026, the Athens Declaration in 2023, as well as France's notification to Turkey via a diplomatic note regarding the GSI, all of which make it more difficult to protect the country's sovereign rights despite arms purchases. At the same time, major political debate was sparked by the remarks of New Democracy's Parliamentary Representative, Dimitris Kairidis, opposite Professor Giannis Mazis. Mr. Kairidis admitted that Egypt refuses to proceed with extending the EEZ delimitation with Greece east of the 28th meridian, in the area between Rhodes and Cyprus, unless Turkey also participates in the negotiations, revealing that Egypt is yielding to Turkish claims, a fact that contradicts the Greek government's celebrations over restarting discussions following Libya's ratification of the Turkish-Libyan memorandum.

The Turkish position

On the other hand, in an article for AA Analysis, the Commander of the Turkish Naval Forces, Admiral Ercüment Tatlıoğlu, analyzed the importance of the Eastern Mediterranean under the prism of the Blue Homeland doctrine, emphasizing the strategic position of the region, energy competition, the security of sea lanes, and the importance of Turkish naval power. As he argues, initiatives such as maritime spatial planning, energy interconnections (such as the GSI cable), and environmental protection actions (such as marine parks), although presented as economic and technical ventures, are promoted in disputed areas in a manner that creates political faits accomplis and affects maritime jurisdictions. He emphasizes that such moves, when taken unilaterally and ignoring Turkish and Turkish Cypriot rights, cannot lead to sustainable cooperation. Tatlıoğlu directly challenges the right of Greek islands to full maritime jurisdiction (EEZ and continental shelf) equal to that of mainland coasts.

Without naming it explicitly, he points to Kastellorizo, stating characteristically that Turkey will not recognize maps that restrict its "Blue Homeland" by claiming a maritime zone of 40,000 square kilometers (4,000 times larger than its area) for an island of just 10 square kilometers located 3 kilometers off the Turkish coast. He further invokes the principle of "proportionality" of coastal lengths (stressing that Turkey has a coastline of over 2,500 km in the Eastern Mediterranean), as well as international case law (North Sea, Jan Mayen, Channel Islands). The Turkish Admiral claims that Greece itself created a precedent in favor of Turkish positions through the EEZ delimitation agreement it signed with Italy in the Ionian Sea, arguing that this specific agreement confirms that full maritime jurisdiction should not be granted to islands. Simultaneously, he states that Greece's effort to enforce its claims south of Crete met with Libya's objections and led only to a "partial" delimitation agreement with Egypt.

Subsequently, he accuses Greece (and the Republic of Cyprus) of proceeding with unilateral licensing for hydrocarbon exploration and cable laying in areas overlapping with the Turkish continental shelf, excluding Turkey. He argues that Athens uses research and drilling vessels belonging to third countries (such as the French Abeille Marengo) in order to secure the diplomatic and political support of those states against Ankara. He categorically warns that the Turkish Navy will never allow foreign vessels to conduct research or drilling on behalf of Greece in the disputed areas. Tatlıoğlu rejects Greece's bilateral agreements with other coastal states that leave Turkey out, arguing that the delimitation of maritime zones in the Eastern Mediterranean must be conducted comprehensively, with the participation and consent of all coastal states in the region. He concludes that any scenarios or energy projects attempting to create faits accomplis by ignoring the country with the longest coastline in the Eastern Mediterranean are doomed to fail. Finally, through an analysis of Turkey's moves (such as Libya's ratification of the Turkish-Libyan memorandum in October 2026, the joint naval exercise Friendship Sea-2026 with Egypt in November, and the statement of readiness for a Turkish-Egyptian EEZ agreement), the Turkish Admiral clearly implies that Ankara is diplomatically breaking the isolation Athens attempted to impose, drawing Egypt and Libya into a more "inclusive" framework that in practice nullifies Greek plans.

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