The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, reiterated this Tuesday that the European Union maintains its refusal to recognize the memorandum of understanding on maritime delimitation signed in 2019 between Turkey and the internationally recognized Libyan Government, after this agreement was ratified today by the parallel authority in eastern Libya through its Parliament.
"We deeply regret the ratification today by the Libyan Parliament of the so-called Memorandum of Understanding between Libya and Turkey on the delimitation of maritime jurisdictions in the Mediterranean Sea," stated Von der Leyen.
For the institutions based in the east of the North African country, this step represents a significant gesture of rapprochement towards Turkey, which they have been demanding recognition from as a key political player on the Libyan chessboard for years.
In recent months, Ankara has strengthened its ties with the strongman of eastern Libya, Khalifa Haftar, and especially with his son Saddam, commander of the eastern forces and an "emerging star" within the power structure of this administration.
The parliamentary validation of the memorandum has provoked an immediate reaction in Greece. The Hellenic Ministry of Foreign Affairs has already denounced a "unilateral parliamentary decision without legal basis" based on what it considers a starting error: the very existence of the agreement, given that "Turkey and Libya do not have opposite or adjacent coasts that justify the delimitation of maritime zones."
Athens feels particularly harmed because its maritime claim directly clashes with Ankara's position, especially regarding the waters located south of the island of Crete.
Von der Leyen emphasized that the EU's stance on this issue was clearly established by the European Council in 2019 and remains the same: the Turkey-Libya Memorandum of Understanding from 2019 "violates the sovereign rights of third States, does not comply with the Law of the Sea, and cannot produce any legal consequences for third States"; therefore it is "null and void."
The community leader concludes by reaffirming "the EU's solidarity with Greece and Cyprus" and reiterates "the well-known opposition of the EU to any form of foreign interference in Libya."