Hakan Fidan Announces Erdoğan Proposal on Greece Energy Project

Hakan Fidan announced that President Recep Tayyip Erdogan proposed during the United Nations General Assembly in New York that Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis purchase electricity directly from Turkey instead of spending over two billion euros on an undersea cable project spanning 2,000 kilometers from Europe, Gazete Oksijen reported. Speaking to the Greek newspaper Ta Nea, Fidan detailed Turkish-Greek relations, regional energy projects, and maritime sovereignty disputes across the Aegean and Eastern Mediterranean seas.

Diplomatic Relations and Domestic Political Rhetoric

Fidan stated that since May 2023, the governments of Turkey and Greece have prioritized resolving existing issues, avoiding tensions, and maintaining confidence-building measures, which has created a calmer environment in the Aegean Sea. Fidan noted that dogfights between the two air forces have ceased. However, Fidan emphasized that Greek domestic politics routinely relies on anti-Turkey rhetoric to function. As Fidan told Ta Nea:

Türkiye olmadan Yunan iç siyaseti var olamaz. Bu gerçeklik, sorunların çözümü için cesur kararlar alınmasını engellediği için önemlidir. Cumhurbaşkanı Erdoğan, aynı mesele için seçilmiş her Yunan başbakanla çalışmak üzere defalarca çaba gösterdi. Tartışmalı konuları ele almak için gerekli siyasi iradeyi ortaya koymaya hazırdır.

Hakan Fidan

Eastern Mediterranean Energy Proposals and Maritime Notification Rules

Addressing the planned electricity interconnection project between Greece and the Greek Cypriot Administration, Fidan clarified that Ankara does not maintain a categorical opposition to the venture. Fidan reiterated that Turkey can supply water, electricity, and natural gas from its mainland located just 70 miles away, benefiting all regional populations without requiring extensive European Union funding for distant infrastructure.

On the matter of maritime research, Fidan stressed that Ankara requires formal, written communication specifying exact geographic coordinates and planned activities to prevent alterations to the existing status quo and avoid new bilateral crises, Haber 7 reported.

The 1995 Parliamentary Resolution on Territorial Waters

Fidan addressed questions from Ta Nea regarding the 1995 resolution by the Grand National Assembly of Turkey, which Athens characterizes as a threat of war, or casus belli. Fidan clarified that the text is an administrative declaration rather than a statute, designed to signal that Turkey would take necessary precautions if Greece expanded its territorial waters to 12 nautical miles without a prior bilateral agreement. Fidan asserted that the preventative measure has successfully protected regional peace rather than threatening aggression.

Furthermore, Fidan dismissed concerns regarding legislative initiatives on maritime boundaries, stating that no such bill concerning the Blue Homeland, or Mavi Vatan, exists, and noted that discussions regarding marine parks have not yet been formally opened.

Diplomatic Momentum and Unresolved Maritime Boundaries

While bilateral talks have improved the day-to-day security climate in the Aegean, comprehensive solutions to maritime jurisdiction remain stalled due to the political costs perceived by successive administrations in Athens. Fidan maintained that President Erdogan possesses the requisite political legitimacy to conclude negotiations, urging Greek leadership to seize the current diplomatic opening while the incumbent administration remains in office.

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