Med7 calls on Turkey to respect law of the sea

The foreign ministers of Greece, Cyprus, France, Italy, Malta, Portugal and Spain, a group dubbed the Med7, issued a joint declaration on Thursday calling on “all countries of the region to respect international law, including the law of the sea, and in particular the sovereignty and sovereign rights of EU member-states.”

The declaration followed a teleconference between the seven countries’ foreign ministers, during which France, Italy, Malta, Portugal and Spain expressed their continued support for Greece and Cyprus vis-a-vis Turkey’s ongoing violations in the Aegean and the Eastern Mediterranean.

Economic recovery amid the coronavirus pandemic was high on the agenda of talks, with the foreign ministers calling for coordinated national exit strategies for “returning to the full functioning of the single market” and “gradually and safely restoring freedom of movement for our citizens.”

Migration was addressed as one of the biggest challenges facing the EU today, with the Med7 saying they look forward to the Commission’s new pact on migration and asylum, “which should be based on shared responsibility and solidarity… and provide tailored assistance to most-affected member-states.”