Turkey has issued a counter-NAVTEX disputing Greece’s jurisdiction over part of the area where the French research vessel Abeille Marengo is due to carry out surveys for the Great Sea Interconnector (GSI). The move came shortly after Athens and Nicosia issued their own notices for the works. The works are scheduled to run from 6 November 2026 to 6 March 2027 and will resume from the point where they were halted in 2024, in the area south of the Greek island of Kasos.
Turkey’s counter-NAVTEX
In counter-NAVTEX 1105/26, Turkey claims that part of the sea area where the surveys will take place lies within the continental shelf it claims as its own. It describes the Greek NAVTEX as “unauthorised” and says it has not given permission for the works.
Ankara also says that all research activities in sea areas it considers to fall under its jurisdiction should be coordinated with the Turkish authorities.
Reference to 2020 letter to the United Nations
In its notice, Turkey refers again to a letter it sent to the United Nations on 18 March 2020 (A/74/757), in which it set out its claims in the region.
Licensing completed by the Greek authorities
Greece’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that the competent Greek authorities had completed the required licensing procedures for the survey and cable-laying works. The application was submitted by the French company Nexans on behalf of GSI, the company that owns the project.
In its announcement, the ministry said that Greek Foreign Minister Giorgos Gerapetritis issued the licensing decision on 6 November 2026. The decision followed a positive opinion from the competent interministerial Committee for the Granting of Marine Research Permits (EChAETh).
“Following this, the research vessel requested the issuance of the required notice to mariners (NAVTEX) for the execution of the works, which was issued immediately,” the ministry stated.
The Greek NAVTEX was issued by the Hydrographic Service of the Hellenic Navy.
Coordination between Athens and Nicosia
Before the notices were issued, Mr Gerapetritis held a telephone conversation with Cyprus’s Foreign Minister, Constantinos Kombos, as part of the coordination between Athens and Nicosia.
Route and timeline of the works
The Greek NAVTEX covers the cable route from Crete to the limits of Cyprus’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). Part of the surveys, mainly in the sea areas north of Crete, has already been completed. The largest remaining section is east of Kasos, heading towards the boundary of Cyprus’s EEZ.
The Abeille Marengo is expected to begin work immediately and to complete it by 6 March 2027, a period of four months.
This is a developing story.
