Egypt and Greece Discuss Expanding Maritime Boundary Agreement

Greece and Egypt have agreed to continue consultations aimed at expanding the geographical scope of the agreement on the delimitation of their maritime boundaries, according to a statement by the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Thursday.

Economic Zone
The agreement signed by Athens and Cairo in 2020 established an exclusive economic zone in the Eastern Mediterranean between the two countries.

In August 2020, Egypt and Greece reached an agreement to delimit the exclusive economic zone between the two countries in the Eastern Mediterranean, enabling them to exploit natural resources, particularly oil and gas reserves. This was announced by Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry during a joint press conference with his Greek counterpart Nikos Dendias in Cairo.

Athens considered that the agreement undermined the memorandum of understanding signed in 2019 between Turkey and Libya's Government of National Accord regarding the delimitation of maritime boundaries, which both Egypt and Greece opposed, arguing it violated international law. Greece viewed the memorandum as infringing upon its rights to the continental shelf, especially in areas surrounding the island of Crete.

The agreement came amid escalating tensions between Turkey and Greece over energy resource exploration and maritime boundary delimitation in the Eastern Mediterranean, amidst broader disputes between the two countries concerning the Aegean Sea and Cyprus.

Greece had previously signed a similar agreement with Italy in June 2020 to establish an exclusive economic zone between the two nations.