Hours after Turkey had issued a counter-NAVTEX warning in response to Greece and Cyprus’ NAVTEX for the resumption of seabed surveys for the Great Sea Interconnector (GSI), the Turkish Minister of Foreign Affairs suggested that the tension was resolved.
In answering a question by Greek network SKAI TV’s journalist Manolis Kostides in Istanbul on Saturday, Hakan Fidan said it was “all good”.
The Turkish reaction to the Greek NAVTEX on Friday evening claimed that parts of the survey zone fall inside Turkey’s declared continental shelf and that the French-flagged research vessel Abeille Marengo, scheduled to start operations over the weekend, should require authorization from Ankara to proceed with marine research.
Regarding the Attempt by a French-Flagged Vessel to Conduct an Unauthorized Marine Scientific Research Activity on the Turkish Continental Shelf in the Eastern Mediterranean https://t.co/t1dmuSCK94 pic.twitter.com/Q2KKxi7ba4
— Turkish MFA (@MFATurkiye) November 6, 2026
The French vessel is expected to leave the port of Herakleion, Crete, on Monday, to approach the interconnector cable survey zone.
Greece rejects Turkish claims, responds that surveys will resume as planned
Diplomatic sources in Greece said on Friday that the surveys by the French vessel for the interconnector cable would start as planned according to the provisions of International Law and that, if Turkey was to be notified of the operations, that wouldn’t occur in the form of a request for authorization, like Turkey had argued in its announcement.
The survey area that the Turkish counter-NAVTEX said it fell inside Turkey’s declared continental shelf is part of the area claimed by Turkey in the controversial 2019 Turkey-Libya maritime agreement, which overlaps with the sea boundaries stated in a subsequent memorandum signed between Greece and Egypt.
Greece and Turkey engaged in a sharp diplomatic confrontation at the United Nations Security Council the previous week over the maritime boundaries dispute.
1.9 billion euro energy project co-funded by the EU
The Great Sea Interconnector (GSI) is an 1.9 billion euro electricity cable project linking Crete and Cyprus, which has faced repeated delays due to financial disagreements and tensions between Greece and Turkey over maritime jurisdiction in the Eastern Mediterranean.
The interconnector, being developed by Greece’s Independent Power Transmission Operator (IPTO), is intended to connect Cyprus to the European electricity grid for the first time, with a possible future extension to Israel.
The European Union has committed approximately €658 million in funding to the project, which Brussels considers strategically important for energy security, renewable energy integration and ending Cyprus’ electricity isolation.
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