Greek foreign minister Gerapetritis calls Turkey-Libya memorandum null and void — Cyprus Mail

Greek Foreign Minister Giorgos Gerapetritis, speaking at UN headquarters, said that the 2019 Turkish-Libyan memorandum on the delimitation of maritime jurisdictions in the Mediterranean has no legal force, contradicts international law and cannot serve as a lawful basis for delimiting maritime areas or create legal consequences for third states. Cyprus Mail reports.

Gerapetritis delivered a joint statement on behalf of Greece, Bahrain, Cyprus, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and the European Union. It concerned the recent decision by Libya’s House of Representatives to approve the 2019 Turkish-Libyan memorandum.

Joint statement at the UN

The participants in the statement believe that this decision raises serious concerns regarding regional security and stability. They also stressed the need to prevent arbitrary bilateral arrangements from undermining established norms of international law or harming the rights of other states.

More current news is available on the UA.News Telegram channel Telegram.

Law of the sea and negotiations

According to the Greek minister, the legal basis for delimiting maritime areas is provided by the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea and customary international law. He noted that these rules are necessary for predictability, legal certainty and peaceful relations between states.

The joint statement says that the memorandum does not take into account geographical realities and the maritime rights of all relevant coastal states, including the rights of islands provided for by the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea. Its participants stated that the Libyan House of Representatives’ further approval of the document does not change this legal assessment.

The participants in the statement also reaffirmed their support for the unification of Libyan institutions and for a united and prosperous Libya. Greece said it was ready to continue bilateral negotiations with Libya on maritime delimitation in accordance with international law.