Turkey has challenged Greece’s maritime authority south of Kastellorizo after issuing its own Navtex for a multinational live-fire exercise scheduled for October 19.
Turkey has issued a maritime safety notice for a multinational live-fire exercise south of the southeastern Aegean island of Kastellorizo, hours after Greece published a similar notice for the planned military activity.
The exercise, named Eunomia, has been planned since last spring and is organised under the Quadripartite Initiative involving Greece, France, Italy and Cyprus.
The Turkish notice, transmitted by the Antalya Navtex station, disputes Greece’s authority to issue maritime warnings for the area, claiming it falls under Turkish jurisdiction and that Antalya is the competent station to issue the relevant notices.
The move adds to ongoing tensions between Athens and Ankara over maritime jurisdiction in the eastern Mediterranean.
Live-Fire Exercise Scheduled for October 19
The Eunomia exercise is scheduled to include live firing between 0400Z and 1000Z on October 19, within a designated maritime area south of Kastellorizo.
The Turkish notice also refers to multinational aeronautical activities planned across a wider area later that day.
The exercise brings together Greece, France, Italy and Cyprus through the Quadripartite Initiative, a framework for regional cooperation that includes military activities and coordination among the four countries.
Electricity Interconnector Route Also in Focus
The maritime area covered by the Greek and Turkish notices lies along the planned route of the French research vessel Abeille Marengo.
The vessel is expected to conduct surveys connected to the planned Greece-Cyprus electricity interconnector cable, once Athens issues the relevant Navtex.
The project, known as the Great Sea Interconnector, is intended to establish an electricity link between Greece and Cyprus, with plans to extend the connection to Israel.
The overlapping notices come as the project continues to draw attention to maritime jurisdiction and the competing positions of Greece and Turkey in the eastern Mediterranean.
The October 19 exercise will take place amid renewed diplomatic and strategic sensitivities in the region, with Greece, Cyprus, France and Italy cooperating through Eunomia.
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