Greece on Aug. 17 denounced Türkiye’s declaration of two national marine parks in the Aegean Sea, calling the move illegal and claiming it has no legal effect on Greek rights.
One decree designates an area between Muğla’s Fethiye district and Antalya’s Kaş district in the southern Aegean as a national marine park, according to a presidential decree published early on Aug. 16.
Another covers an area in the North Aegean near the coasts of Tekirdağ and Çanakkale.
Türkiye says the parks are aimed at protecting marine biodiversity. Greece, however, said the move violated international law to the extent that the designated areas extend into the high seas or Greece’s continental shelf.
“To the extent that the parks cover high seas areas, their establishment is illegal,” the Greek Foreign Ministry said, arguing that no state can unilaterally establish marine protected areas beyond its national jurisdiction.
The ministry also said the parks extend into what it considers the Greek continental shelf, stressing that the declaration “creates no legal effect whatsoever” regarding either the high seas or Greece’s rights.
Greek media have also reported that Athens is preparing to establish another national marine park in the southern Aegean. The relevant decree is currently before Greece’s top administrative court and is expected to be finalized in October, according to To Vima.
Marine parks have long been a source of tension between Ankara and Athens. Greece announced two such parks last year, one in the Ionian Sea and another around the southern Cyclades, prompting strong objections from Türkiye.
Ankara has argued that Greece’s marine park initiatives, particularly those around the Aegean islands, are politically motivated rather than purely environmental and could be used to alter the status quo in the disputed sea.
Greek media have now framed Türkiye’s latest move as another dimension of its “Blue Homeland” doctrine.
