Tensions flared again between Turkey and Greece in the Aegean Sea as Ankara issued a second navigational warning, or Navtex, after Athens launched a military exercise across the Aegean Sea early on Wednesday, the T24 news website reported.
The standoff began after Turkey announced that its Piri Reis research vessel would conduct scientific surveys in parts of the Aegean for 10 days. Greece responded by launching a medium-scale exercise across the sea, deploying air, naval and ground forces in what it described as a show of deterrence.
As the drills continued, Turkey issued another Navtex, repeating its longstanding claim that certain Greek islands must remain demilitarized under international treaties. Ankara also warned that military activity in the designated areas could jeopardize navigational safety.
Greek media reported that the Turkish advisory included coordinates overlapping with Greek territorial waters and the continental shelf. The Greek exercise, which began early Wednesday, involved more than 60 fighter jets, the Hellenic Navy fleet, special forces on 30 islands and army units near the northern border with Turkey.
Greece and Turkey, both NATO members, have a long history of disputes over maritime boundaries, airspace and territorial sovereignty in the Aegean.
After years of tension concerning migration, energy rights and maritime borders in the Aegean Sea, Greece and Turkey restarted high-level talks in December, when President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan paid his first to Athens since 2017 and signed a declaration of friendship between the two historic rivals.
Mitsotakis reciprocated Erdoğan’s visit in May 2024.