A storm is brewing in the otherwise calm waters of the Aegean Sea, dividing Türkiye and Greece. While Türkiye seeks to assert its rights on the sea whose both shores are popular summer destinations, Greece is reportedly gearing up to counter it, per reports by Turkish and Greek media outlets.
In response to the “Blue Homeland” draft bill unveiled in early May in Ankara, Athens is reportedly considering declaring new “marine parks” in the Aegean Sea while expanding the limits of its territorial waters south of Crete island, according to the reports.
The Greek government did not confirm reports, but Foreign Minister George Gerapetritis was recently quoted as saying that they would “absolutely utilize legal tools of response if Ankara takes this matter to new extremes.”
Greece last year announced two marine parks or areas for protection of maritime species in the Ionian Sea and southern islands of Cyclades, to the chagrin of Ankara. Türkiye argued that the declaration of marine parks near the islands in particular was political rather than for the sake of biodiversity and was an attempt to change the status quo in the disputed sea. The Greek media outlets reported that new marine parks can be declared near Dodecanese islands, or “On Iki Ada” (Twelve Islands) as they are known in Türkiye. The islands were Ottoman domain until the early 20th century before they were ceded to Italy. Italy, in turn, ceded them to Greece following World War II.
