By Abbas Nazil
Turkey has reiterated its determination to deepen maritime cooperation with Libya under the framework of their 2019 memorandum of understanding (MoU), despite recent criticisms from the European Union.
The reaffirmation came through Turkish Defense Ministry sources who responded to media inquiries at the ministry’s headquarters, addressing the final statement from the EU leaders’ summit that criticized the Turkey-Libya maritime jurisdiction agreement.
According to Turkey’s state-run Anadolu Agency, officials from the Defense Ministry emphasized that the 2019 MoU, which concerns the delimitation of maritime jurisdiction zones, was developed in accordance with the principle of equity and in alignment with international maritime law.
The agreement, signed on November 27, 2019, along with a separate memorandum on security and military cooperation, was jointly notified to the United Nations by both Ankara and Tripoli, underscoring its legal validity.
The Turkish officials firmly rejected claims that the agreement is “illegal,” attributing such accusations to the politically motivated opposition of Greece and the Greek Cypriot administration. They described these criticisms as unilateral and lacking objective legal basis.
The sources maintained that the agreement was crafted in a way that preserves the legitimate rights and interests of both Turkey and Libya, grounded in established principles such as the median line approach between mainlands and the doctrines of non-encirclement and sovereign equality in maritime zones.
The median line principle, central to the maritime boundary agreement, involves drawing a line equidistant from the nearest points of land of each country to fairly distribute maritime jurisdiction.
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This approach, Turkish officials stressed, prevents the unjust encroachment of one nation’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) by another and is commonly accepted in international maritime negotiations.
Turkey views the MoU with Libya as a key element in its strategy to assert maritime rights in the Eastern Mediterranean, a region rife with overlapping claims, particularly involving Greece, Cyprus, and Egypt.
The deal has drawn international scrutiny, especially from EU member states, which argue that it disregards the maritime entitlements of other regional actors.
However, Ankara maintains that the criticisms are politically driven and not grounded in universally accepted legal standards.
Despite the tensions, Turkey remains committed to upholding and expanding its maritime partnership with Libya, with the aim of preserving mutual interests and ensuring regional stability.
Turkish officials underscored that cooperation with Libya will continue to be guided by the terms of the existing MoU and reinforced through diplomatic and technical collaboration in maritime affairs.
The 2019 memoranda between the two countries, covering both military and maritime matters, marked a turning point in their bilateral relations.
Turkey has since played a prominent role in supporting Libya’s internationally recognized government, both strategically and economically.
The ongoing maritime cooperation, Turkish sources affirm, stands as a testament to Ankara’s broader geopolitical vision in the Mediterranean, where energy resources and territorial sovereignty remain highly contested.
