Greece has firmly rejected Turkey’s latest claims over the status of sovereignty in the Aegean, calling them “unfounded and unacceptable” and stressing that Greek sovereignty remains non-negotiable.
The Greek Foreign Ministry issued the strongly worded statement on Saturday in response to Ankara’s comments on Greece’s new Special Spatial Planning Framework for Industry and the Supply Chain.
The ministry said Turkey’s repeated claim, made whenever Greece announces a new Special Spatial Planning Framework, gains neither legal basis nor substance simply because Ankara continues to repeat it.
The statement followed comments on Friday by Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesman Öncü Keçeli, who claimed that Greece’s new spatial planning framework does not produce legal effects.
Athens responded directly, stating that Greece’s position on the sovereignty status of the Aegean remains “absolutely clear,” rests on the applicable international treaties and requires no further comment.
The Greek response also rejected renewed Turkish attempts to revive theories concerning “grey zones” and geographical formations whose sovereignty allegedly remains undetermined.
Keçeli had called on Athens to respect the Athens Declaration on Friendly Relations and Good-Neighbourly Relations and expressed Turkey’s readiness for cooperation. At the same time, however, his remarks presented Turkey as having a role in the joint management of the Aegean.
Greece rejected any attempt to create new facts on the ground and moved quickly to close the discussion over Aegean sovereignty.
