Dendias briefs European counterparts on Turkey’s harassment of research ship

Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias has briefed his European counterparts over the recent harassment by Turkish warships of the Maltese-flagged Nautical Geo research ship of French interests, Kathimerini understands. The ship was conducting exploration activities on behalf of the Greek state in an area east of the island of Crete.

The foreign ministers held an extraordinary meeting in New York on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly.

According to diplomatic sources, Dendias informed his counterparts on the “unacceptable move” of the Turkish warship which harassed the Maltese-flagged vessel as it was carrying out scientific research inside the Greek continental shelf – as designated by the Greece-Egypt maritime deal of 2020 – in an area 10 nautical miles east of Crete.

The same sources described the move as being “outside the bounds of reasonable behavior,” adding that the image of normality that Turkey aspires to project to the world is “completely divorced from reality.”