The issue of a forthcoming declaration by the Greek government of marine parks in the Ionian Sea and the south Aegean will, as previously reported, will be high on Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis’ agenda on Monday at the third UN Ocean Conference (UNOC3) in Nice. The conference is co-hosted by France and Costa Rica.
The next phase before a final declaration is public consultation for possible revisions, improvements and corrections.
Mitsotakis is expected to outline the significance that Greece – an archetypical coastal state with an archipelago of islands in the Aegean, the large central Mediterranean island of Crete, and a string of large islands along the western littoral in the Ionian Sea – attaches to protection of oceans and seas.
According to reports, he will again focus on the issue of maritime security, another top priority for Athens. Last month Greece’s presidency of the UN Security Council – for the month of May – convened a high-level open debate at the UN’s headquarters entitled “Enhanced Maritime Security through International Cooperation for Global Stability.”
Mitsotakis is also scheduled to co-chair a panel on marine sustainability and littoral eco-systems, along with Brazilian President Luiz Lula da Silva.
Two points that Mitsotakis is expected to stress are the fact that Greece has recently ratified the UN Convention on Marine Biological Diversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction, as well as the Commission’s most recent approval of a European Ocean Pact that helps support a “thriving blue economy” and the well-being of people living in coastal areas.
Developments ahead of possible meeting with Erdogan
Upon the Greek PM’s return from the French Riviera, an unofficial “countdown” will begin for the next one-on-one meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, which could possibly take place on the sidelines of a NATO Summit in The Hague on June 24 and 25.
The marine parks issue could emerge on the agenda of bilateral talks. Official Turkey has expressed its testiness over the declaration of the marine park in the south Aegean, as its standing position on maritime delimitation and jurisdiction in the specific sea is “exceptionalist” and unilateral, coming in opposition to the UN Convention on Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
Additionally, the Mitsotakis’ government has directly and very publicly demanded Ankara rescind a Turkish national assembly decision, dating to 1995, which threatens war (casus belli) in case exercises its international right to extend territorial waters beyond the current six nautical miles. The occasion for the demand by Athens comes as Turkey is eager to join the EU’s recently announced defense sector spending spree, the ReArm Europe initiative.
Mitsotakis will be accompanied in Nice by Environment and Energy Minister Stavros Papastavrou.
Source: tovima.com
