Turkey disputes Greece's industrial zoning plan, citing Aegean claims

Turkey has responded to Greece's newly announced Special Spatial Framework for Industry and Supply Chain, asserting that the plan, which extends to the Aegean Sea, carries no legal weight for Ankara. The Turkish Foreign Ministry stated that the framework does not produce "any legal consequence" for Turkey in the context of the intertwined Aegean issues between the two countries.

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The Special Spatial Framework for Industry and Supply Chain, announced today (August 28) by Greece and which also covers the Aegean Sea, will not have any legal consequence for our country within the framework of the intertwined issues of the Aegean between the two countries.

In a statement on Friday, Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesperson Oncu Keceli specifically highlighted that the Greek plan covers the Aegean Sea. He reiterated Turkey's established positions on the status of "geographical formations whose ownership has not been transferred to Greece by international agreements." This move reasserts long-standing Turkish claims concerning sovereignty issues in the Aegean.

The Turkish ministry also invoked the Athens Declaration on Friendly Relations and Good Neighborliness, signed on December 7, 2023. Ankara maintains that both countries should act in accordance with the framework established by this declaration. "As Turkey, we maintain our position that an approach consistent with the Athens Declaration on Friendly Relations and Good Neighborliness of December 7, 2023, should be adopted," Keceli stated.

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As Turkey, we maintain our position that an approach consistent with the Athens Declaration on Friendly Relations and Good Neighborliness of December 7, 2023, should be adopted.

Despite the diplomatic friction, Ankara declared its readiness for cooperation with Athens. Keceli concluded by saying, "Turkey is always ready to cooperate with Greece as one of the two coastal states of the Aegean Sea." The new Greek framework aims to create a unified spatial plan for productive development, offering clearer investment rules and a transition from scattered development to organized forms of spatial planning. It also prioritizes investments related to critical and strategic raw materials to bolster energy security and strategic autonomy.

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Turkey is always ready to cooperate with Greece as one of the two coastal states of the Aegean Sea.