Greek Cypriot Foreign Minister Constantinos Kombos announced that they are ready to delimit maritime jurisdiction areas and the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) between South Cyprus and Greece. Kombos made the statement while presenting the Foreign Ministry's 2027 budget to the Finance Committee of the Greek Cypriot House of Representatives.
Kombos stressed that the delimitation issue can only move forward through a decision taken at the highest political level by both sides. According to Bugün Kıbrıs, Kombos also said that preliminary work had been carried out on the matter. The Greek Cypriot minister stated that no timetable had yet been set for launching the process, but that close contact with Athens was continuing.
The timing of the statement drew attention. Kombos's remarks came immediately after the Libyan Parliament ratified the Memorandum of Understanding on the Delimitation of Maritime Jurisdiction Areas signed between Türkiye and Libya.
The Greek Cypriot administration and Greece claim that the Türkiye-Libya memorandum encroaches on their maritime jurisdiction areas. Kombos said they were acting in coordination with Athens and Brussels on the memorandum; according to Bugün Kıbrıs, the minister said this coordination was being carried out on a daily basis.
Türkiye, for its part, maintains that the agreement signed with Libya complies with international law and protects the rights of both countries in the Eastern Mediterranean.
