Limassol, Cyprus. Greek Foreign Minister Giorgos Gerapetritis on Thursday called on the European Union’s 27 member states to “articulate a single, strong voice against revisionism” as he arrived at an informal summit of EU foreign ministers in Limassol. His remarks appeared to be directed at neighbouring Turkey.
Revisionism concerns
“Revisionism in an extremely fragile geopolitical environment is cause for much greater concern. It effectively amounts to the creation of global tensions to the detriment of people across the world,” he said.
Much of the commentary from foreign ministers arriving on Thursday focused on Ukraine and the Middle East, and Gerapetritis’ comments could also have been aimed in part at Russia and what the European Commission has previously described as “revisionism” in rhetoric towards Ukraine and references to its history.
Turkey maritime bill
Shortly before Gerapetritis arrived at the port of Limassol, Greek newspaper To Vima quoted Greek defence ministry sources as describing Turkey’s plans to codify its maritime claims in the Aegean and Mediterranean seas in line with the “Blue Homeland” doctrine, known as “Mavi Vatan” in Turkish, as “revisionist”.
Turkey’s government announced earlier this month that it plans to bring a “maritime jurisdiction law” before parliament after the end of the Eid al-Adha holiday, which began on Wednesday.
The country’s defence ministry said at the time that the bill “will define responsibilities in our maritime jurisdiction areas and address shortcomings in our domestic legal framework,” and that final details were being completed.
Turkish reporting
Turkish public broadcaster TRT reported that sources from the ruling AK Party said that under the regulation, the exclusive economic zone and continental shelf boundaries, which constitute Turkey’s maritime borders, would be codified into law.
TRT also said the draft addresses the legal status of islands, islets and rocks in the Aegean Sea, which it said occasionally cause tension between Turkey and Greece and are referred to as “grey zones.” It added that the description and status of these geographical formations would be included in the “Blue Homeland law.”
The broadcaster said the bill would be drafted “in accordance with the principles of international maritime law.”
Reaction from Cyprus
President Nikos Christodoulides said he expected a “European” response if Turkey’s parliament passes the bill.