Turkey has issued a new anti-NAVTEX, challenging the Republic of Cyprus’s authority to issue navigational instructions for a maritime area in the Eastern Mediterranean, which Ankara considers part of the Turkish continental shelf.
The Turkish NAVTEX No. 1100/26, issued on November 6 by the Antalya station, is a response to the Cypriot NAVTEX MA86-337/26, which concerns geophysical surveys by the research vessel “Kobi Ruegg” for the East to Med Corridor (EMC) undersea telecommunications cable project, which connects Saudi Arabia with Greece.
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The surveys are scheduled to take place from November 2 to 15 within the Exclusive Economic Zone of the Republic of Cyprus.
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“The area is located within the Turkish continental shelf”
In its counter-NAVTEX, Ankara claims that the Cypriot directive was issued by an “unauthorized station” and that the specific maritime area falls within the jurisdiction of the Turkish NAVTEX service.
At the same time, it cites the coordinates of the outer limits of the Turkish continental shelf in the Eastern Mediterranean, as notified to the United Nations on March 18, 2020, in document A/74/757.
Special mention is made of the name “Cyprus,” which is used in the Cypriot NAVTEX.
Ankara claims that the “Cyprus” referred to in the maritime notice is not identical to the state established in 1960.
It also states that the use of this specific name cannot under any circumstances be interpreted as recognition of the Republic of Cyprus by Turkey, nor does it affect its rights and obligations arising from the Treaty of Guarantee and the Treaty of Establishment of 1960.
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In particularly categorical terms, the Turkish NAVTEX states: “The efforts of the Greek Cypriot Administration of Southern Cyprus to legitimize its illegal claims through NAVTEX MA86-337/26 are null and void and have not been, nor will they be, accepted by Turkey.”
The Turkish counter-NAVTEX will remain in effect until November 16, 2026.
With this latest move, Ankara is reiterating its long-standing positions on maritime zones in the Eastern Mediterranean, challenging both Nicosia’s jurisdiction over the disputed area and the Republic of Cyprus’s ability to exercise its relevant rights without Turkish objections.
Source: CNA
