Dispute between Athens and Ankara: ministerial visit canceled

Relations between Greece and Turkey are once again strained. The recent controversy over the deployment of the Turkish Navy near Cyprus and the Turkish school textbook maps criticized by Athens as revisionist culminated in the cancellation of a planned visit by Turkish Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya. He was supposed to meet several representatives of the conservative government of Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis (Nea Dimokratia/ND) in Athens.

Last week, Turkish warships entered the Mediterranean where the Italian research vessel Ievoli Relume was conducting seabed surveys of a submarine cable that Greece plans to build between Crete and Cyprus, sparking diplomatic outrage. Greek media said the warships violated international maritime law because they did not maintain the minimum distance of one nautical mile stipulated therein. Of course, there was no direct confrontation. Nevertheless, the Greek ambassador to Ankara sent a protest note to the Turkish Foreign Ministry over the matter.

Another bone of contention is the “Blue Homeland Map”. Criticism from Athens is that it is now also appearing in Turkish textbooks. The map, also common in military circles, shows Turkish territory designated “Mavi Vatan” (“Blue Homeland”), which also includes the Greek Aegean islands of Lemnos, Lesbos, Chios and eastern Crete. The original hangs at Istanbul Military University, according to media reports.

Athens accuses Ankara of questioning the sovereignty of the islands and the International Convention on the Law of the Sea. Turkey and Greece have been arguing for some time over gas reserves discovered in the eastern Mediterranean and Aegean Seas. Nicosia and Athens disagree with Ankara’s claim to have drilling rights in the area.

According to Greek media reports, despite the tensions at the diplomatic and political levels, the two countries are willing to continue cooperation in the field of police and coast guard. This is essential for successfully solving migration problems and combating smuggling networks, the Kathimerini newspaper wrote on Wednesday.