Turkey’s Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan has drawn attention to what analysts describe as a longstanding contradiction in Ankara’s maritime policy after acknowledging Iran’s right to 12 nautical miles of territorial waters in the Strait of Hormuz while Turkey continues to reject the same right for Greece in the Aegean Sea.
Speaking about maritime security and shipping through the strategically vital Strait of Hormuz, Fidan said Iran has the right to 12 nautical miles of territorial waters under international law.
“In international waters, Iran has a right of 12 nautical miles. On the other side is Oman. There is also a sea corridor of about 20 miles between them. The issue is which area will be used and in what way. There is a difference of perception there and there needs to be a common understanding to avoid new tensions,” Fidan said.
A different stance in the Aegean
Fidan’s remarks have reignited debate over Turkey’s position in the Aegean, where Ankara has maintained since 1995 that any Greek decision to extend its territorial waters from six to 12 nautical miles would constitute a casus belli—or cause for war.
Under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), coastal states are generally entitled to extend their territorial waters up to 12 nautical miles. Greece maintains that it has the sovereign right to do so under international law.
Turkey, however, argues that the Aegean’s unique geography requires a special legal framework and contends that the standard provisions of the Law of the Sea should not automatically apply.
Turkey already applies the 12-mile rule elsewhere
Analysts have long pointed out that Turkey itself has implemented the 12-nautical-mile limit along its Black Sea coastline and across much of its Mediterranean coast, accepting the same principle that it opposes in the Aegean.
For this reason, Fidan’s comments on the Strait of Hormuz have been interpreted by some observers as highlighting the inconsistency in Ankara’s maritime position.
Rather than opposing the principle of 12 nautical miles itself, critics argue that Turkey seeks to establish a unique exception for the Aegean, where it believes different legal and geographical circumstances apply.
Longstanding source of tension
The issue of territorial waters remains one of the most sensitive disputes between Greece and Turkey.
Athens maintains that extending its territorial waters is an internationally recognised sovereign right, while Ankara insists such a move would significantly alter the balance in the Aegean and has repeatedly warned against any unilateral action.
Fidan’s latest remarks have once again brought the debate into focus, with analysts noting the contrast between Turkey’s acceptance of the 12-nautical-mile principle in other parts of the world and its opposition to its application in the Aegean.
Source: SKAI