Ankara moves to codify ‘Blue Homeland’ doctrine in law

ANKARA

Türkiye is preparing legislation to formally define its maritime jurisdiction areas, with the draft bill reportedly authorizing President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to declare “bodies of water with special status.”

Introduced during a news conference hosted by Ankara University’s National Center for the Sea and Maritime Law (DEHUKAM), the bill aims to establish legal definitions for maritime borders, jurisdiction zones and activities carried out within those areas.

Çağrı Erhan, acting chair of the presidency’s Board of Security and Foreign Policies, said the proposal stemmed from efforts to safeguard Türkiye’s rights and interests under international law.

DEHUKAM head Mustafa Başkara said the legislation would support Türkiye’s “Blue Homeland” doctrine in the Black Sea, Eastern Mediterranean and around Turkish Cyprus, as well as areas linked to Ankara’s maritime agreement with Libya.

“For us, the Blue Homeland is wherever a ship flying the Turkish flag reaches,” Başkara said.

The doctrine was developed by former Turkish naval officers and refers to Türkiye’s claims over maritime jurisdiction zones, continental shelf rights and exclusive economic interests in surrounding seas.

It has long been regarded as a central pillar of the nation’s security strategy and geopolitical outlook, and at the center of disputes with Greece over the Aegean and eastern Mediterranean.

DEHUKAM board member Yücel Acer said Türkiye lacked a comprehensive domestic legal framework governing maritime jurisdiction areas despite being surrounded by seas. He said the proposed law would codify Ankara’s existing legal arguments rather than create new claims.

Acer also said the bill would not conflict with the 1936 Montreux Convention, which regulates passage through the Turkish straits, adding that it would reinforce Türkiye’s position that the Bosporus, the Dardanelles and the Marmara Sea fall under Turkish sovereignty.