The moment when Ankara’s true intentions over the Greece–Cyprus electricity interconnector become clear has arrived. After the words and statements from both sides, it is now time for survey operations on the ground.
Athens is monitoring developments with heightened vigilance. Following the issuance of a NAVTEX two days ago, work on laying the cable is resuming, with the French research vessel Abeille Marengo, while Turkey’s stance remains an open question.
“Everything is normal, everything is fine,” Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said yesterday (to Kathimerini). Some interpret the statement as an attempt to defuse the tensions of recent days, although it came just hours after Ankara rushed to issue a counter-NAVTEX, once again challenging Greece’s sovereign rights in the area.
The Greek government, for its part, says how Turkey manages its response domestically is not its concern. It maintains that the survey permits were issued by the competent Greek authority, in accordance with international law, and that Greece will continue to exercise its rights.
It remains unclear what prompted the Turkish minister’s statement, given that the French side is understood to have made moves behind the scenes and to have informed Ankara. The content of that communication (communiqué) remains unknown, as does whether it will be “leaked” to serve Turkey’s domestic political needs. It also remains to be seen whether Turkey will make another move — for example, by issuing a NAVTEX — to show that it approves of the vessel’s actions.
In any case, attention now turns to the French vessel’s departure from the port of Heraklion in the coming hours and to the progress of the surveys. Under the plan, the first phase is expected to take place within Greek territorial waters.
The next, and clearly more critical, step will be to extend operations beyond six nautical miles, into maritime areas where Turkey asserts claims to the continental shelf. It will then become clear whether Ankara, insisting that it should have a say in developments, will limit itself to diplomatic moves — the most likely scenario, according to officials — or try to create facts on the ground, as it did off Kasos in the summer of 2024, by obstructing the surveys.
Turkish escalation
In Athens, officials believe the current international climate acts as a deterrent to any serious escalation by Turkey. The response of the European Union and major regional powers (Israel, Egypt and others) to the Turkey–Libya memorandum, the new environment taking shape in the US after the midterm elections, and the international climate conference to be hosted in Antalya all form a backdrop in which a new Greek-Turkish flare-up would be difficult for Ankara to manage.
That does not mean the Greek side is letting its guard down, however, as experience has shown that Turkey’s true intentions are revealed above all by its actions.
Against this backdrop, Deputy Prime Minister Kostis Hatzidakis sought to clarify Athens’ position, while also responding to opposition criticism that the government was being too conciliatory.
He noted that the company undertaking the project sought permission exclusively from Greece and Cyprus, the two countries involved in the interconnection. He described Turkey’s issuance of a counter-NAVTEX as a practical rebuttal to claims that the government recognises Turkey as a regulator. “We are monitoring everything,” he said, stressing that the government is defending the national interest without making gestures for domestic political consumption.
In a similar vein, Deputy Foreign Minister Tasos Hatzivasileiou made clear that Athens and Ankara had held no discussions over the authorisation of the surveys. He stressed that permission was granted by the Greek side and that sovereign rights in the area of the cable are exercised exclusively by the Hellenic Republic and the Republic of Cyprus.
He also highlighted the project’s European dimension, noting that EU funding and the involvement of French interests give the interconnection broader strategic significance. The government, he assured, would proceed according to its plans while safeguarding its rights.
Another Deputy Foreign Minister, Yannis Loverdos, said the consortium’s vessel “will pass only through Greece’s territorial waters into international waters, where Turkey or any other country naturally cannot intervene. We hope it will go smoothly. That is our assessment, and no one will obstruct it. But if necessary, we will address it operationally,” reiterating the position expressed by George Gerapetritis in parliament.
Everything, of course, will play out on the ground, as words now give way to actions and ... the stark reality.