Ankara is attempting, in a low-key manner, to revisit the issue that arose regarding the NAVTEX messages for the surveys conducted by the French vessel “Abeille Marengo” in the Eastern Mediterranean regarding the GSI pipeline, following the recent tensions in Greek-Turkish relations.
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, when asked by SKAI’s correspondent in Istanbul, Manolis Kostidis, struck a reassuring tone, while Turkish diplomatic sources maintain that the issue that had arisen has now been resolved, though no further details were provided.
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“Everything is normal, everything is fine,” said the Turkish foreign minister.
The Abeille Marengo is set to sail on Monday
Fidan’s reassuring statements come after intense diplomatic negotiations, centered on Ankara’s demands regarding the French vessel’s research activities. Athens had made it clear that any notification to the Turkish side could not take the form of a request for permission, while Turkey was demanding written notification of the start of operations.
It should be noted that the French research vessel “Abeille Marengo” is preparing to set sail from the port of Heraklion, Crete, most likely on Monday, November 9, with the aim of resuming work on the GSI submarine cable, which will connect Greece and Cyprus via electricity.
According to reports, the research vessel has been chartered for this purpose by the French company Nexans with the aim of conducting continuous six-month surveys in the area from Karpathos to Cyprus, that is, in an area fully delineated by the nearly simultaneous Navtex messages issued yesterday by Athens and Nicosia.
However, the possibility of strong winds in the area could delay the planning or slow down the exploration efforts.
SEE ALSO: When will the Abeille Marengo set sail? The background following the escalation over the GSI and the role of the French
Athens: International Maritime Law Is Clear
Last night, diplomatic sources in Athens responded in a stern tone to the statement by the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in which Ankara contested the NAVTEX notices issued by Greece and Cyprus regarding the start of surveys by the French vessel VB Abeille Marengo, as part of the electrical interconnection between the two countries.
At the same time, a Turkish unmanned aerial vehicle with the call sign VATOZ17 was conducting surveillance flights south of Karpathos, in the area through which the undersea cable is expected to pass.
“The operations of the French research vessel VB Abeille Marengo will proceed in accordance with the company’s operational plan, in Greek and Cypriot territorial waters and in areas of the Greek and Cypriot continental shelf,” Greek diplomatic sources emphasize in response to the provocative statement by the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The same sources point out meaningfully that “international maritime law is clear and leaves no room for different interpretations.”
Turkish UAV in the area south of Karpathos
At the same time, there was intense activity by Turkish unmanned aerial vehicles in the northeastern and southeastern Aegean, with flights extending from the Kesani area to Karpathos.
According to reports, a Turkish UAV, with the call sign VATOZ17, was flying south of Karpathos, conducting repeated surveillance circuits in the area where the Greece–Cyprus power interconnection cable is to be laid.
According to the same sources, an unmanned aerial vehicle of the AKINCI or ANKA type, which took off from the naval base in Dalaman and is carrying out a mission to clarify the surface situation, with the aim of monitoring activity in that specific maritime area.
The UAV appears to be turning its tracking transmitter on and off intermittently, making it intermittently visible to flight tracking systems.
SEE ALSO: Tensions Escalate Over GSI: Turkey Deploys UAV to Monitor the Area Where the Cable Will Be Laid
According to available information, it is the Turkish unmanned aerial vehicle that is operating closest to the area where the work is scheduled to take place.
Earlier on Friday, Turkey escalated its blackmail in a statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, stating that it demands a permit application be submitted to the Turkish authorities for the surveys to be conducted in areas of the “Turkish continental shelf,” that is, throughout the Eastern Mediterranean.
The statement by the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs is even more problematic, as Ankara, based on its unilateral declaration of the outer limits of its alleged EEZ, is attempting to overlap with the area of the Greek EEZ as defined by the Greek-Egyptian Agreement.
SEE ALSO: Turkey Bargains Over the Cable: “Cyprus-Greece NAVTEX Notifications Are Invalid; No Permit Request Has Been Submitted to Us”
The Turkish ministry, stating that it has canceled the NAVTEX notices issued by Greece and Cyprus, appears to be haggling until the last minute, in order to secure a permit request that would justify the continuation of the surveys domestically as well.
It also warns of its “determination to protect our sovereign rights under international law,” adopting, as he puts it, “an approach based on cooperation, dialogue, and coordination” in the region.
Source: Proto Thema
