Hydrography

A bill that extends Greece's territorial waters to 12 miles from the current 6 on the western part of the country only has been tabled in Parliament.

The parliamentary committee on Foreign Affairs and Defense will begin debate on the bill on Tuesday, January 12; a second reading will take place on Jan. 15 and the plenary session will take up the bill on Jan. 19.

The presidential decree on the closing of bays and drawing of straight baselines in the maritime area of the Ionian and the Ionian islands up to Cape Tainaro in the Peloponnese entered into force through its publication in the government gazette Sunday.

The move is a necessary step in the process of extending Greece's western territorial waters.

The United Kingdom has announced the extension of sanctions on persons involved in illegal drilling in the Eastern Mediterranean, namely in Cyprus, beyond December 31, when the transitional period for the UK's formal exit from the European Union expires.

A crucial and recurring question posed with every Greek-Turkish crisis is: How will Greece manage to contain Ankara's aggression? Athens must certainly not give in to the provocations. At the same time, it must safeguard its sovereign rights.

Ankara has used contradictory language over the last 24 hours regarding the Greece-Italy agreement for the delimitation of the countries' maritime zones in the Ionian Sea. 

The Greek government is scurrying to close an EEZ delimitation deals with Egypt and Albania after having cut a deal with Italy, thus resolving a deadlock of over four decades.

Athens has accused Ankara of adopting a "selective interpretation" of international law after the country's foreign minister, Mevlut Cavusoglu, said that an agreement between Greece and Italy on maritime boundaries had confirmed the validity of Turkey's claims regarding maritime accords.

The Greece-Italy agreement delimiting the two countries' Exclusive Economic Zones is undoubtedly a milestone in Greek foreign policy.

The reason is that it not only resolves an issue that has festered for 43 years but also because it sends a resounding message to Ankara that Greece will not only invoke international law but is also prepared and determined to enforce it.

Greece and Italy on June 9 signed an accord on maritime boundaries to establish an exclusive economic zone (EEZ) between the two countries.

The agreement was signed during Italian Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio's visit to the Greek capital Athens.

Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias has said he will travel to Cairo on June 18 to resume talks with Egyptian officials on demarcating maritime boundaries between the two countries.