The Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs gave a verbal note to the Libyan Embassy in Athens, claiming that the south and west of Crete, where the seismic research vessel “SANCO SWIFT” operates, is under the jurisdiction of Greece, according to Greek press reports, citing diplomatic sources.
Greek press reports also said that the Foreign Ministry’s note to the Libyan Embassy remarked that the memorandum of understanding signed between Turkey and Libya didn’t say that Greece violated its sovereign rights.
Meanwhile, the Libyan Foreign Ministry condemned the Greek agreement with international companies for oil and natural gas exploration and drilling activities in the Mediterranean on the maritime borders of Libya and Greece on December 07, 2022.
A statement by the Libyan Foreign Ministry stressed that Greece was taking advantage of the crisis in Libya, as it had agreed with international companies to conduct seismic surveys in disputed areas with the aim of imposing its stance on Libya within maritime jurisdiction areas.
Turkey and Libya sent last December a joint response to Greece via the United Nations, which conveyed dissatisfaction with the agreements they signed between on the delimitation of hydrocarbon and maritime jurisdiction areas. They called on Greece to respect the sovereign decisions of its two neighboring countries.
