Egypt, UAE and Saudi Arabia Side With Greece Against Turkey-Libya Sea Deal
Three Arab nations have formally backed Greece in its ongoing dispute over a controversial maritime boundary agreement between Turkey and Libya.
A diplomatic alignment with significant geopolitical weight has emerged in the eastern Mediterranean, as Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, and Saudi Arabia have thrown their support behind Greece in its challenge to a maritime accord struck between Turkey and Libya. The move signals that opposition to the 2019 Turkey-Libya memorandum of understanding extends well beyond Athens and into the broader Arab world.
The Turkey-Libya maritime deal has long been a flashpoint in regional politics. Greece, along with the European Union, has consistently argued that the agreement unlawfully overlooks the island of Crete and distorts established boundaries under international maritime law. The backing from three influential Arab states lends new diplomatic credibility to that position and could complicate Ankara's ambitions to assert influence over resource-rich waters in the region.
Read more Rights Groups Question UAE Diplomat's Bid to Lead the UN →
The support from Cairo, Abu Dhabi, and Riyadh is not purely symbolic. Egypt in particular shares a direct stake in eastern Mediterranean energy exploration, having signed its own maritime delimitation agreement with Greece in 2020 — an accord that directly contradicts the Turkey-Libya memorandum. The alignment of Gulf states alongside Egypt underscores how the dispute has become intertwined with broader regional rivalries and energy interests that extend far beyond a bilateral Greece-Turkey disagreement.
For Ankara, the unified front presents a diplomatic headache at a time when it has been seeking to repair strained relationships with several Gulf nations. Turkey's maritime claims, if recognized, could give it leverage over future offshore energy development in contested waters — making the stakes considerably higher than a technical boundary quarrel. The three Arab states' public backing for Greece suggests that a growing coalition views the Turkey-Libya pact as a destabilizing precedent rather than a legitimate exercise of sovereign agreement.
The dispute remains unresolved at the international level, and it is unclear whether this show of support will translate into concrete diplomatic or legal action against the accord. Continue reading at Reuters.
