Turkey Greece Border Dispute – Free PDF Download

Table of Contents

THE COUNTRIES INVOLEVED

Turkey has signed a deal with Libya that maps out a boundary in the east of the Mediterranean Sea, but in the middle is the Greek island of Crete.
A map published by Turkey shows the Turkish and Libyan Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZ) meeting midway across the Mediterranean, over an area also claimed by Greece.

United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) is also known as Law of the Sea treaty.The latest UNCLOS is UNCLOS III which covers all the vital issues regarding the maritime boundaries

Exclusive Economic Zones refers to the area from the edge of the territorial sea out to 200 nautical miles from the baseline. In this area, the country has sole exploitation rights over all natural resources.The most important reason to introduce EEZ was to halt the clashes over the Fishing Rights and Oil Rights. In the EEZ, the foreign vessels have freedom of navigation and over flight, subject to the regulation of the coastal states. Foreign states are allowed to lay submarine pipes and cables.

Turkey is one of the small minority of states which did not sign or ratify UNCLOS. It is in a minority of one in voting every year in the General Assembly of the United Nations against the Omnibus Resolution of the Law of the Sea item

Washington has called Turkey’s move unhelpful and provocative. Perhaps more significantly, Israel, which has long-standing low-profile links with the Turkish military, has also declared its support for Greece.
EU also stands behind Greece
Turkey cannot accept UNCLOS as the definition of EEZ will give Greece a an advange in the region