It has been in effect since 2:13 p.m., the NAVTEX from the Heraklion Hydrographic Station has been in effect, designating the required maritime area for the French research vessel Abeille Marengo’s surveys regarding the laying of theGSI’s seabed.
“Eastern Cretan Sea—Southeastern Cretan Sea—Eastern Mediterranean: A survey operation for the installation of an undersea cable will be conducted by the “Abeille Marengo” from November 6, 2026, to March 6, 2027.”
ΣΧΕΤΙΚΑ ΑΡΘΡΑ
SEE ALSO: Technical work on the cable is moving forward: What ADMIE and GSI are announcing following the Cyprus-Greece NAVTEX
Reports circulating in the Greek media since this morning indicated that the French-flagged research vessel had notified the Heraklion Port Authority of its intention to depart today from the port, which explains why the NAVTEX is in effect as of today.
“The Greek government will not take any further action—whether it be notification or authorization—as the Minister of Foreign Affairs has stated. The procedure to be followed by the company is a separate matter. I’ll say it again: no permit, no request for a permit anywhere else.”
Pavlos Marinakis – Government Spokesperson for Greece
READ ALSO: What We Know About the “Abeille Marengo”: How the French Vessel Will Conduct the Search for the GSI and Where It Will Pass Through
Following Athens’ lead, the Larnaca Search and Rescue Coordination Center issued a related NAVTEX at 6:00 p.m.
“The Abeille Marengo will conduct geological mapping surveys within the Exclusive Economic Zone of the Republic of Cyprus from November 19, 2026, through March 19,2027.”
READ ALSO: GSI Pipeline: NAVTEX Issued for the Vessel That Will Conduct Surveys for the Cable
Now all eyes in Nicosia and Athens are on Ankara, with the Greek Deputy Foreign Minister not expecting a large-scale reaction from Turkey.
“I believe we will not see scenes of heightened tension. My impression is that such a situation is not in the interest of Turkey or anyone else in the region. Therefore, let us remain calm and restrained, and let us follow—as the government is doing with seriousness and responsibility—the plan that has been laid out from the beginning.”
Tassos Hatzivassiliou – Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Greece
The composure and confidence with which the Greek government is responding seem to reflect the developments surrounding the surveys of the vessel KOBI RUEGG for the laying of the fiber-optic cable that will connect Greece with Saudi Arabia.
The Larnaca Search and Rescue Coordination Center issued a NAVTEX regarding these surveys, as the vessel is currently located southwest of Paphos, while the Heraklion Hydrographic Station has also issued a corresponding NAVTEX.
“The vessel ‘KOBI RUEGG’ will conduct geophysical surveys for the cable system, East to Med Corridor (EMC), within the Exclusive Economic Zone of the Republic of Cyprus from November 2, 2026, to November 15, 2026.”
“Southeastern Cretan Sea: Subsea survey for the installation of a fiber-optic cable by the vessel ‘KOBI RUEGG,” in an area falling within the Greek Exclusive Economic Zone and continental shelf, from November 7 to November 11, 2026.”
Heraklion Hydrographic Station
Ankara responded with a counter-NAVTEX, in which it disputes the Cypriot EEZ and the Republic of Cyprus.
“The area is located within the Turkish NAVTEX service area and the Turkish continental shelf, the outer limits of which were notified to the UN in a letter dated March 20, 2020. Furthermore, the ‘Cyprus’ referred to is not the original partner state established in 1960.”
In essence, the research vessel Kobi Ruegg is continuing the surveys it began southeast of Crete on October 27, entering the waters of the Cypriot EEZ and proceeding unimpeded along a similar course as the Abeille Marengo, which will conduct surveys for GSI.
READ ALSO: “The area is within the Turkish continental shelf”: Turkey issues a new anti-NAVTEX regarding the cable
At the same time, Turkey issued a second counter-NAVTEX, in response to the Greek NAVTEX announcement HA15-1411/26, which concerns research activities in the Eastern Mediterranean for the Greece–Cyprus power interconnection project.
In announcement 1105/26, Ankara claims that a portion of the maritime area reserved by the Greek NAVTEX lies within the Turkish continental shelf, which, as it states, it notified the United Nations of on March 18, 2020.
At the same time, the Turkish authorities maintain that they have not given their consent to the research activities described in the Greek announcement, which they characterize as “unauthorized.”
The Turkish NAVTEX also states that any research activity within areas that Ankara considers to fall under its maritime jurisdiction must be coordinated with the relevant Turkish authorities.
