Greece’s readiness to negotiate with Libyan government that will arise after the elections, in order to delimitation of maritime zones based on the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed in a verbal message he delivered to the Libyan embassy in Athens.

The oral communication was filed in order to refute the non-existent objections received from Tripoli government about his allegedly “illegal” actions “Sanko Swift”, a seismic survey vessel south of the Peloponnese and west and southwest of Crete. These objections came from the openly pro-Turkish prime minister of the Tripoli government, Abdul Hamid al-Dbeiba, and his associates.

The oral communication indicated that the Sanco Swift research was conducted in areas under the jurisdiction of Greece, in full compliance with all norms of international maritime law, and emphasized that “the coordinates of the areas in which investigations are being carried out are available to all interested parties through the issuance of appropriate NAVTEX’.

Since the Tripoli side used the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) as an argument to stop investigations conducted on behalf of the research vessel Exxon Mobil/HELLENiQ ENERGY, the MFA welcomed the fact.

However, diplomatic sources said the oral communication reminds Tripoli that “the two illegal and non-existent memorandums of understanding it signed with Turkey (November 2019 and October 2022) flagrantly violate the core provisions of UNCLOS, which also reflect international customary norms.” law”.

In the same context, it is emphasized that these memorandums ignore and violate Greece’s sovereign rights over its continental shelf, as well as its sovereign rights and jurisdiction over its exclusive economic zone (EEZ). The oral communication ends with an appeal to the historical bonds of friendship, while highlighting the desire of Greece to resume bilateral cooperation in a spirit of mutual trust.

The Tripoli Administrative Court ruled in favor of suspending the agreement between Turkey and Libya regarding hydrocarbon exploration – the decision is not binding.

The situation is fluid

Ankara also considers the reaction of the Tripoli government to be largely submissive. However, as yesterday’s judgment of the Tripoli Administrative (Appeal) Court showed, the situation on Libyan soil remains unstable.

In particular, according to the Libyan Review (which is also confirmed by Greek sources), after an appeal filed in December last year by five Libyan lawyers, the Tripoli Administrative Court ruled in favor of suspending the implementation of the Turkish-Libyan agreement regarding hydrocarbon research (Turkish-Libyan Libyan memorandum of October 2022).

The main argument of the court was the resolution of the General National Congress of Libya No. 44 of 2013, which in practice does not allow the interim government to conclude agreements that bind the country abroad.

Interestingly, this argument is officially used by Greece against the Turkish-Libyan memorandums. This decision, of course, is not binding, but it testifies to the situation that has developed even in Tripoli.