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Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said Saturday that Greece \u201cretains the inalienable right\u201d to extend its territorial waters to 12 nautical miles \u201cwhenever and however it deems fit.\u201d<\/p>\n
Speaking at a press conference on the second day of the 90th Thessaloniki International Fair, Mitsotakis said he would \u201cnever enter into a discussion about issues that Turkey raises and are non-issues for the Greek state.\u201d He reiterated that the only matters Athens is prepared to discuss with Ankara are the delimitation of maritime zones in the Aegean and the Eastern Mediterranean.<\/p>\n
He also pointed to recent Greek foreign-policy moves he said previous governments had not pursued, including maritime spatial planning, marine parks, seabed surveying, and a stronger deterrent capability.<\/p>\n
On rearmament, Mitsotakis said Greece would continue dialogue on bilateral issues but would not \u201cask anyone\u2019s permission on how we will arm ourselves.\u201d<\/p>\n
Asked about a timetable for resuming work on the planned Greece-Cyprus electricity interconnection (GSI), he said it was \u201ca matter of a few months.\u201d Previous seabed surveys by foreign-flagged research vessels have been interrupted by Turkish warships, most recently east of Kasos and Karpathos.<\/p>\n
\u201cTurkey has no legitimate reasons to block the project. I believe it will not do so. We are also in consultation with France to address all eventualities,\u201d he said. \u201cI consider it a positive development for a French group to invest.\u201d<\/p>\n
This story has been updated.<\/em><\/p>\n