Turkey renews defence of 2019 maritime deal with Libya in UN letter

Turkey has reaffirmed its position on the eastern Mediterranean in a formal communication to the United Nations, placing the defence of its 2019 maritime memorandum of understanding with Libya at the forefront of its argument.

In a letter dated 16 February — five days after a Turkish-Greek summit in Ankara — Turkey’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ahmet Yıldız, accused Greece of advancing what he described as a “selective interpretation of the law of the sea” in recent diplomatic notes. The remarks, reported by the Greek outlet Kathimerini, refer to disputes over the delineation of the continental shelf and exclusive economic zones.

According to the report, Ankara reiterated its objections to Greece’s maritime spatial planning, arguing that Athens’ efforts to defend what it characterised as “maximalist and excessive claims” regarding maritime boundaries challenge international law and carry no legal consequences for Turkey.

The Turkish letter concluded by expressing readiness to engage in talks with Greece and other coastal states, while recalling the “spirit and intentions” of the Athens Declaration issued on 7 December 2023.

Greek response

Diplomatic sources in Athens described the Turkish move as an “expected development” that came as no surprise.

The same sources said the letter repeated what they called “well-known but imaginary and arbitrary interpretations of international law, particularly the law of the sea”. They added that Turkey was once again disputing Greece’s legitimate rights while continuing to refuse recognition of the Republic of Cyprus, a member state of both the European Union and the United Nations.

Greek officials further stressed that “repetition of legally unfounded claims does not grant them validity nor produce legal effect”.

The 2019 Libya-Turkey memorandum

The maritime dispute is rooted in a memorandum of understanding signed in late 2019 between Ankara and the former Libyan Government of National Accord, led at the time by Fayez al-Sarraj.

The agreement, concluded between Turkey and Libya, set out a framework for delimiting maritime boundaries in the Mediterranean and granted both sides rights to define their respective exclusive economic zones.

The deal reshaped the geopolitical landscape of competition over Mediterranean energy resources, particularly gas and oil, and prompted objections from neighbouring states, which argued that it disregarded certain islands and did not align with international legal principles.

On 27 May 2025, Libya deposited maps with the United Nations specifying the outer limits of its exclusive economic zone. The submission was published on the organisation’s official website on 1 July 2025. Libyan authorities stated that the move was grounded in international law and reflected the country’s sovereign right to manage its coastal and continental waters.

Tensions flared again on 25 June when Libya’s National Oil Corporation signed a memorandum of understanding with Turkish Petroleum Corporation, authorising geological and geophysical surveys in four offshore areas.

Greece responded in September with its own diplomatic note, asserting that Libya’s position was based on the 2019 memorandum with Turkey — an accord that continues to divide regional powers and shape the evolving balance of influence in the eastern Mediterranean.