Turkey Says Greece-Cyprus-Israel Power Cable Must Be Agreed with Ankara
Turkey's Defence Ministry said the Greece-Cyprus-Israel undersea power cable cannot cross disputed areas of the eastern Mediterranean without prior approval from Ankara.
Abdulrahman Sadikhli3 min read
Turkey's Defence Ministry said the planned undersea electricity cable connecting the power systems of Greece and Cyprus, with a prospective extension to Israel, cannot pass through areas of the eastern Mediterranean that Ankara claims as its own without prior agreement with Turkey. The statement again heightened a long-running dispute over maritime boundaries in the region.
"Under international law, activities such as laying cables or pipelines and conducting scientific research on our continental shelf must be agreed in advance with our country," the ministry said.
The issue concerns the Great Sea Interconnector, a multibillion-euro link intended to connect the electricity grids of Greece and Cyprus and eventually extend to Israel. According to the European Commission, it is one of the world's largest subsea electricity interconnections; it is intended to end Cyprus's isolation from the European electricity grid, strengthen energy security and enable wider flows of renewable energy between countries.
The Greece-Cyprus section, between Crete and Cyprus, is planned to run for 898 kilometres. EU financing of 658 million euros has been allocated for its construction. Cyprus has also directed 100 million euros from its recovery plan to the wider project.
The planned Cyprus-Israel section would add about 324 kilometres and is designed to transmit up to 1000 megawatts of electricity in both directions. Greek grid operator IPTO said in August that it had submitted an investment-approval application to regulators in Cyprus and Israel after studies showed the connection was economically viable under all scenarios considered.
Turkey says parts of the planned route pass through areas it considers its continental shelf. Ankara bases its position in part on the 2019 maritime boundary agreement with Libya and on coordinates for its claimed continental shelf submitted to the United Nations in 2020. The Turkey-Libya agreement, registered with the UN, establishes a maritime boundary between the two countries through the eastern Mediterranean.
Greece and Cyprus reject Turkey's interpretation of maritime jurisdiction in the region and maintain that Greek islands generate their own continental shelf and exclusive economic zones in accordance with international law. These competing claims have repeatedly increased tensions between Turkey and Greece, both NATO members.
Previous Incidents
The cable project has already been drawn into these disputes. In July 2024, tensions rose when the Italian research vessel Ievoli Relume was carrying out seabed work for the Greece-Cyprus connection near the Greek islands of Kasos and Karpathos. Turkey sent several warships to the area; Greek naval vessels were also present.
A month later, another phase of research work near Kasos was monitored by the Turkish Navy, but no incident occurred. Turkey had also previously intervened in research work related to subsea cable projects in waters it claims.
Source: turkishminute.com
