HALC urges Rubio to reject Turkey-Libya maritime memorandum

Washington, United States. The Hellenic American Leadership Council (HALC) has urged US Secretary of State Marco Rubio to publicly repudiate the Turkey-Libya maritime memorandum and affirm that it carries no legal consequences for third countries, including Greece. The organisation warned that the agreement puts US energy investments and strategic interests across the eastern Mediterranean at risk.

Criticism of Washington’s response

In its letter to Rubio, HALC, led by executive director Endy Zemenides, argued that the State Department’s latest response represented a retreat from Washington’s stance when the memorandum was signed in 2019.

The appeal came after Libya’s House of Representatives ratified the memorandum on October 20. That move drew an EU response and revived concerns about rival maritime claims and offshore energy exploration across the region.

HALC contrasted the American response with the EU position issued on October 21 and backed by its 27 members. The EU reaffirmed that the memorandum violates third countries’ sovereign rights, conflicts with maritime law and cannot have legal consequences for other states. Egypt and Israel have likewise objected to the accord.

On October 22, the State Department instead urged negotiations conducted in good faith to settle maritime disputes and called for Greece and Turkey, both Nato allies, to pursue bilateral talks.

HALC recalled that Washington had characterised the agreement in 2019 as “counterproductive and provocative”. It warned that Ankara and Tripoli might regard US reluctance to directly confront its legal implications as implicit acceptance of their maritime claims.

US energy interests near Crete

The letter highlighted the expanding role of American energy companies in exploration off Crete as a key concern.

HALC cited agreements Chevron signed in February covering hydrocarbon exploration and exploitation across four Greek offshore areas, with the company holding a participating interest of 70 per cent. Those areas include the South Crete 1 and South Crete 2 blocks.

Libya has lodged formal objections to Greek exploration in those areas. Turkey’s defence ministry, meanwhile, has asserted that Chevron’s exploration blocks intersect with maritime zones allocated to Libya by the memorandum.