Ankara is now treating France's diplomatic "notification" about the Greece-Cyprus electricity interconnector (GSI) seabe...

Ankara is now treating France's diplomatic "notification" about the Greece-Cyprus electricity interconnector (GSI) seabed surveys as a formal permission request, according to sources tracking the standoff. That reinterpretation puts Athens and Paris in a difficult position, since Greece's position is clear: only the coastal state has the authority to license activity on its own continental shelf and issue the relevant NAVTEX. The French-flagged survey vessel Abeille Marengo is expected to begin operations off Kasos this weekend, resuming work that was halted in the summer of 2024 when Turkey dispatched four warships to the same waters. Greece is set to issue a NAVTEX authorizing the surveys, and Turkey is expected to answer with its own counter-NAVTEX contesting Greek jurisdiction in the area. Under the established pattern from previous disputes, Greece's Heraklion station would then issue a further counter-NAVTEX making clear that the surveys are taking place on the Greek continental shelf and that the valid authorization is the Greek one. If Turkey limits its response to competing NAVTEX notices and radio challenges without deploying warships, operations are expected to proceed. The French dimension adds a layer of complexity. French investment group Meridiam acquired a majority stake in GSI last August, and French diplomats have been in contact with Turkish officials in Ankara. Whether France's outreach was framed clearly enough to prevent Ankara from claiming it constituted a request for consent remains unresolved. Greece had insisted that any notification to Turkey would explicitly state it was not a request for authorization. That distinction now appears to be exactly the fault line Turkey is exploiting. #Greece #Cyprus #EasternMediterranean