Turkey defies Israel and Europe over Libya maritime deal, offers African ally Egypt 15,000 sq km advantage over potential Greece deal, but Cairo says no

Turkey’s latest offer comes at a time of growing tensions in the Eastern Mediterranean, where the European Union, Israel, Egypt, Greece and Cyprus are challenging Ankara’s separate maritime agreement with Libya.

The dispute took a new turn in October when Libya’s eastern-based parliament approved the agreement, reviving disagreements over maritime boundaries and control of offshore oil and gas resources.

“We once again emphasize that we are ready to sign an Agreement on the Delimitation of Maritime Jurisdiction Areas with Egypt in line with mutual interests,” the ministry said.

Egypt, however, is no stranger to such agreements. Under President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, Cairo signed a partial maritime boundary deal with Greece in August 2020, which Athens said expanded its maritime rights by 38,000 square kilometres.

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s government is now seeking to persuade Egypt that a deal with Turkey could offer Cairo greater maritime jurisdiction than a potential arrangement with Greece.

“It is assessed that if Egypt signs such an agreement with our country, it would gain more than 15,000 square kilometers (5,792 square miles) of additional maritime jurisdiction compared to a potential agreement it could conclude with Greece,” Turkey’s Defence Ministry said.

Cairo has pushed back against Ankara’s offer, with Egypt’s ambassador to Greece, Murad Murad, ruling out negotiations over a Turkish-Egyptian maritime agreement.

“The Turks are trying to justify to us the agreement they made with the Libyans, but in no way are we discussing a Turkish-Egyptian agreement. We condemn the Turkish-Libyan memorandum,” Murad told Greek newspaper Kyriakatiki Apogevmatini.

Murad also reaffirmed Egypt’s ties with Greece, describing their relationship as one built on “friendship and sincere cooperation.”

His remarks place Cairo at odds with Ankara’s latest diplomatic proposal, despite improving relations between Egypt and Turkey in recent years.

The wider disagreement stems from Libya’s eastern-based House of Representatives’ decision on October 20 to approve a maritime agreement signed between Turkey and Libya’s then internationally recognised government in Tripoli in 2019.

Libya’s eastern parliament had opposed the deal for years before reversing its position following renewed diplomatic engagement with Ankara, bringing the disputed agreement back into focus across the Eastern Mediterranean.

Libyan lawmaker Tarek al-Jeroushi defended the decision, telling Reuters that it would strengthen Libya’s political, military and economic relationships with major powers.

“Some countries may be upset by this agreement, but what matters to us is our national interest,” he said.

However, the approval triggered a diplomatic backlash, with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President António Costa rejecting the agreement in a joint statement.

“This agreement infringes upon the sovereign rights of third states, it does not comply with the Law of the Sea, and is null and void,” the EU leaders said.

Brussels also reaffirmed its support for Greece and Cyprus, while a subsequent declaration at the United Nations on October 26 brought together the EU, Egypt, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates in opposition to the arrangement.

Egypt and Israel separately condemned the agreement on October 21, although their objections focused on different concerns.

“Egypt reaffirms that this memorandum is null and void,” Egypt’s Foreign Ministry said.

Israel’s Foreign Ministry took a stronger position against Ankara’s regional activities.

“This agreement infringes upon the sovereign rights of our close allies in the region. Regretfully, once again we see Turkey working to destabilize the eastern Mediterranean region,” the ministry stated.

Despite the opposition, Ankara has defended its maritime claims as consistent with international law and continues to seek closer cooperation with Egypt, even as Cairo rejects talks on a bilateral maritime agreement.