Turkey issues counter-Navtex challenging Cyprus over East Med cable surveys

Turkey has issued a new counter-Navtex challenging the Republic of Cyprus’ authority to issue maritime notices for an area of the eastern Mediterranean which Ankara claims forms part of its continental shelf. The Turkish Navtex, numbered 1100/26 and issued on November 6 by the Antalya station, responds to Cyprus’ Navtex MA86-337/26, concerning geophysical surveys by the research vessel Kobi Ruegg for the East to Med Corridor (EMC) submarine telecommunications cable project, which will connect Saudi Arabia with Greece. The surveys are scheduled to take place between November 2 and 15 within the Republic of Cyprus’ Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). In its counter- Navtex, Ankara claims that the Cypriot notice was issued by an “unauthorised station” and that the maritime area concerned falls within the jurisdiction of the Turkish Navtex service. Turkey also refers to the coordinates of the outer limits of its continental shelf in the eastern Mediterranean, as communicated to the United Nations on March 18, 2020, through document A/74/757. The Turkish notice makes particular reference to the use of the name “Cyprus” in the Cypriot Navtex. Ankara claims that the “Cyprus” referred to in the maritime notice does not correspond to the state established in 1960. It further states that the use of the name cannot under any circumstances be interpreted as Turkish recognition of the Republic of Cyprus, nor can it prejudice Turkey’s rights and obligations under the 1960 Treaty of Guarantee and Treaty of Establishment. In particularly strong language, the Turkish Navtex states: “The attempts of the Greek Cypriot Administration of Southern Cyprus to legitimise its illegal claims through Navtex MA86-337/26 are null and void and have not been, nor will they be, accepted by Turkey.” The Turkish counter-Navtex will remain in force until November 16, 2026. The latest move reiterates Ankara’s longstanding position on maritime zones in the eastern Mediterranean, challenging both Nicosia’s authority in the disputed area and the Republic of Cyprus’ exercise of maritime rights without Turkish objections.