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So far, no one seems to be determined to be the first to start a conflict in the Mediterranean and the Aegean, which could have dramatic consequences for the entire region and beyond.
However, the marina is already waiting for a signal, so the possibility of further escalation is obvious.
Let’s see how both neighbors came to that.
1. What caused the last fight?
Turkey stated that on July 21. It will send a ship that will begin seismic work in the waters of the Greek island near the city of Antalya in southern Turkey. Greece considers that part of this territory belongs to its so-called continental shelf at Kastelorizi.
Turkey disagrees, saying the island is too small and too far from mainland Greece to make claims.
Oruc Reis
2. Has this not already been heard somewhere?
Really so. Turkey and Greece are neighbors and members of the North Atlantic Treaty Alliance, but this did not prevent them from reaching the threshold of war in 1996. on two islets further north, inhabited only by goats.
With the Turkish navy escorting their ship named Oruc Reis and an anchor launched by Greek colleagues just a few kilometers away, the situation is completely unpredictable at the moment.
The confrontation would further complicate the geopolitics of the Eastern Mediterranean countries and would likely involve others in the conflict, including the European Union and the United States.
3. What is the origin of these disagreements?
History, oil and gas.
Ankara and Athens have been at odds for centuries – this includes the collapse of Byzantium, the Ottoman Empire, the Greek War of Independence that began in 1821, and the subsequent battles during the Turkish War of Independence that led to the establishment of the Republic of Turkey. in 1923.
The Turks last encountered the Greeks in 1974. Cyprus, occupied by Turkey after a military coup inspired by the Athens junta to annex Cyprus to Greece.
Recently, Turkey and Greece have been discussing immigrants and St. Hagia Sophia’s conversion into a mosque.
Following the discovery of natural gas in Cyprus and the prospect of increased hydrocarbon reserves, even more sovereignty disputes have arisen. This has been going on since November, when a maritime agreement signed by Turkey with the United Nations-backed Libyan government led Ankara to claim rights to those parts of the seabed that Athens considers belong to Greece under international law.
Oruc Reis
4. What else is causing controversy?
The entire body of water that separates Turkey and Greece. The two sides base their claims on completely different legal arguments.
Ankara argues that the country’s continental shelf should be measured from its continent, so that the area to the south of the Greek island, a few kilometers from the southern coast of Turkey, is within its area. Greece says that, according to UN maritime law, the islands must also be taken into account when defining the country’s continental shelf, which would give it exclusive right to the territory, despite the island’s proximity to Turkey. Turkey has not signed the law.
5. Will someone intervene?
1996 The United States intervened in the conflict, deterring both sides from waging war on the islands known as Imija in Greece and Kardak in Turkey. The EU, of which Greece is a member and to which Turkey wants to join, also has some influence. However, relations with Ankara have weakened in recent years, undermining Brussels’ ability to influence decisions there.
Russia, which is trying to be more active in the eastern Mediterranean, tends to stay away when Turkey and Greece start fighting.
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