Greece-Cyprus cable survey restarts as Turkish NAVTEX sparks opposition row

Survey ship sails from Heraklion

The French research ship Abeille Marengo has left the port of Heraklion to start bathymetric surveys for the electricity link between Greece and Cyprus. The departure is seen as closing the stage in which Athens managed a possible Turkish reaction, a reaction that appears to have eased after the NAVTEX issued on Tuesday. In Athens there is an assessment that there is no appetite in Ankara for escalating tension in the current circumstances. The open question is whether the restart of the work will prompt Turkish steps similar to those taken in summer 2024.

Turkish NAVTEX and the note to Paris

Turkey issued a NAVTEX on the afternoon of Tuesday, 10 November, and Greece answered immediately with a counter-NAVTEX. Athens reads the Turkish move as a reply to the fact that permission for the project was requested and granted only by Greece and Cyprus. A Turkish report, cited by the opposition on Wednesday, 11 November, says Ankara handed a verbal note to Paris on Tuesday. According to that account, the note repeats the need to comply with international law and conveys Turkish consent to the planned research activities. Opposition parties question the content of the French verbal note and whether such a step was necessary at all, since Athens had already issued a NAVTEX on navigation safety on Friday, 6 November.

Opposition pressure and the promised briefing

Because no official briefing has been given, coverage describes room for rumours, scenarios and claims of "secret diplomacy" and possible concessions. Government spokesperson Pavlos Marinakis urged that party rivalry not come first on foreign policy.

“When we are talking about matters that concern foreign policy, we must not put party confrontation first.”

Foreign Minister Giorgos Gerapetritis will brief the party leaders on Saturday, 14 November, an announcement made on Wednesday, 11 November. Deputy government president Kostis Hatzidakis said the briefing would be done individually with each leader.

“Mr Gerapetritis will contact them, there will be an individual meeting with the party leaders and they will be given the text of the verbal note.”

The government defends its handling by pointing out that only Greece and Cyprus gave permission for the project and that only they were asked for permission by the company carrying out the work. Critics argue that as long as the text of the note remains unknown, speculation about a backroom compromise or a retreat from national red lines will continue.

Mitsotakis travels to Dublin

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis travels to Dublin on Thursday, 12 November, for the 9th European Political Community summit. The informal European Council follows on Friday, 13 November. At the Community meeting he is expected to press for affordable energy and diversified supply sources, presenting Greece as an energy and transit hub in the wider region. He is also expected to stress interconnectivity, protection of sea routes and freedom of navigation.

Gerapetritis is due to brief the party leaders on Saturday, 14 November.