Greece and Turkey Clash Over New Marine Parks in Aegean Sea

Greece and Turkey are experiencing renewed tensions following Turkey's designation of two marine parks in the Aegean Sea and eastern Mediterranean. One park is located in the northeastern Aegean between the Greek islands of Lemnos and Samothrace, while the other is east of Rhodes and surrounds the Greek island of Kastellorizo. The Greek Foreign Ministry has called the establishment of these parks illegal, stating they have no legal validity because they lie outside Turkish territorial waters.

This dispute follows a period of relative calm that began after Greece provided aid to Turkey following a devastating earthquake in February 2023 and culminated in the December 2023 Athens Declaration on Friendly Relations and Good-Neighbourliness. However, long standing disputes over maritime boundaries and economic rights to natural resources like oil remain unresolved.

Greece previously announced two marine parks in 2025 in the Ionian Islands and southern Cyclades. Turkey reacted to those moves by stating that unilateral actions should be avoided in closed or semi closed seas. Analysts suggest that environmental protection is a secondary concern and that these parks are being used as tactics to assert dominance in disputed areas. Greece specifically views Turkey's actions as an application of the Mavi Vatan, or Blue Homeland, doctrine. This doctrine involves Turkish claims to the exclusive economic zones of Greece and Cyprus and challenges the sovereignty of several Greek islands.

In response to perceived threats from a better armed Turkey, Greece has increased its investment in defense. According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, Greece ranked 19th worldwide among the largest importers of major arms from 2021 to 2025, purchasing fighter jets, frigates, submarines, and air defense systems.