Greece will proceed with the electrical interconnection project linking Greece and Cyprus despite Turkish opposition, Foreign Minister Georgios Gerapetritis confirmed today during a television interview with Open TV.
Responding to journalists’ questions about whether the project would continue given Turkish reactions, the Greek minister stated that “the laying of the Greece-Cyprus electrical interconnection and ultimately Israel is a European programme” and “will continue normally, research will continue in the coming period.”
Project protected under international law
When asked whether a NAVTEX would be issued in early autumn to advance research, Gerapetritis declined to provide specific details but assured there was “absolutely no reason for concern.”
The Greek government’s position is that “laying electrical cables is something absolutely protected by International Law. It cannot be obstructed,” the minister explained, adding that “if Turkey, which aspires to become a European Union member, believes it should obstruct a European project, it will bear the consequences.”
Greece prepared for all scenarios
Asked about Greece’s potential response if Turkey again sends frigates to the research and cable-laying area, the minister said Greece would “protect our sovereign rights and exercise them in the field,” adding that “all potential scenarios are ready.”
“Greece will not abandon any right arising from International Law. It will exercise all its rights in the field, under any circumstances, having the alliances it possesses,” Gerapetritis continued, noting this forms part of “a broader policy of upgrading Greece’s geopolitical position in the Mediterranean.”
The minister emphasised that Greece “today is in a much better position compared to where it was two years ago.”
Diplomatic strategy shift
Addressing broader Greek-Turkish relations, Gerapetritis highlighted that the current Greek government had taken unprecedented action by “registering with international organisations or the European Union the outermost limits of potential continental shelf.”
“We will not be passive recipients. We will increase our diplomatic footprint. They listen to us everywhere. They listen to us at the UN, at the European Union. We have developed our alliances in the Gulf, in the Arab world, in Israel. From there on, the period of passivity has passed irreversibly,” the minister stated.
Greece secures veto over Turkish EU defence participation
Gerapetritis also addressed European Union defence programmes, describing Greece’s position as “a very clear success of Greek diplomacy.”
He explained that while “Turkey, like any third country, could have entered directly into EU armaments programmes,” Greece ensured regulations explicitly state that “any third countries can participate only to the extent that they do not oppose national interests.”
The minister noted that “if one country has a war threat against another country, by definition and objectively it opposes national interests.”
Furthermore, Greece secured provisions requiring “a bilateral agreement between the European Union and the third country” before any third-country participation in European programmes. “In this agreement, Greece has a veto,” Gerapetritis confirmed.
“Greece today has managed to have a veto on Turkey’s participation in European armaments programmes, where it was not previously provided for,” the minister concluded, referencing a European Commissioner’s response confirming “no country will enter European defence planning if it opposes the national interests of a member state.”
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