The European Parliament adopted resolutions on the 12-mile, EEZ, violations and Turkish provocations, according to the Greek MEP.

At the center of European discussions on the course of EU–Turkey the European Parliament’s new annual report has taken center stage, with Vangelis Meimarakis emphasizing the importance of the interventions that, as he notes, strengthened the Greek positions in the final text. The Greek MEP spoke of a result that emerged after a lengthy process of consultations and cooperation among political groups, noting that the resolution addresses issues concerning Greek-Turkish relations, international law, security in the Eastern Mediterranean, and European demands on Ankara.

“the significant victories Greece achieved during the adoption of the European Parliament’s annual report on Turkey,” MEP and former New Democracy (ND) president Vangelis Meimarakis noted in a statement.

Greece’s legitimate right

As he points out, “following intense consultations and negotiations, cross-party support was secured for an amendment by the majority of MEPs, which refers to Greece’s legal right to extend its territorial waters to 12 nautical miles, the continuous violations of our territorial waters and airspace, the illegal NAVTEX broadcasts and overflights, and the challenge to the Greek EEZ.”

He also referred “the systematic work that preceded this over many months, in his capacity as a member of the European Parliament’s Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Committee on Security and Defense”.

As he emphasized, “in close cooperation with colleagues from the European People’s Party, as well as from other political groups, he tabled a series of amendments as early as the stage of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, which were approved and formed the basis for the final text adopted today by the Plenary.”

He also emphasized that “the final resolution is a particularly strong and balanced political text, which clearly sets out Turkey’s obligations toward the European Union, recognizes Greece’s long-standing positions grounded in international law and the law of the sea, while also documenting Turkey’s serious shortcomings regarding the rule of law, human rights, democracy, and good-neighborly relations.”