The U.S. State Department has urged Greece and Turkey to resolve their maritime disagreements through bilateral talks, responding to a question about the ratification of a maritime memorandum between Turkey and Libya by Libya’s House of Representatives, based in the country’s east.
In its first response to the development, the State Department did not address the legality of the agreement or the Libyan parliament’s decision. Instead, it emphasized the potential economic benefits of resolving maritime disputes and encouraged Athens and Ankara to negotiate directly.
“We encourage our Eastern Mediterranean partners to resolve maritime disputes through good-faith negotiations,” the department said.
“Resolving maritime issues serves the interests of all sides and opens the door to commercial investment and exploration activities that will benefit the entire Mediterranean region,” it added.
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The State Department also highlighted Greece’s and Turkey’s shared membership in NATO, urging the two allies to engage in bilateral discussions to address their differences.
“Greece and Turkey are both NATO allies. We encourage them to engage bilaterally to address any issues of disagreement,” the department said.