Nervenkrieg um Energie-Ressourcen im östlichen Mittelmeer
War of Nerves over Energy Resources in the Eastern Mediterranean

The Turkish-Libyan Memoranda of 27 November 2019

Summary/Abstract: An old conflict over energy resources in the eastern Mediterranean flared up again when Turkey and Libya signed two memoranda in November 2019. The first memorandum demarcated the exclusive maritime zones of the two countries. The second one granted Turkish military assistance for the Government of Libya. Greece and Cyprus blame Libya, and especially Turkey for having concluded an agreement at the expense of a third party. Greece stipulates that islands have a continental shelf and exclusive economic zones of their own. Turkey opposes this interpretation. Additionally, Ankara negates the legal authority of the Republic of Cyprus to carry out exploration work in the exclusive economic zone of the entire island. The geopolitical dimension of the conflict becomes evident when countries like Israel, Lebanon and Egypt get the impression that their interests are negatively affected by the deal between Turkey and Libya. The same concerns the European Union which is interested in having access to energy resources in the Mediterranean.

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