An agreement was signed to delimit the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) between Greece and Italy, following a meeting between Foreign Ministers Nikos Dendias and his Italian counterpart Luigi Di Maio, ERT reported.
"It simply came to our notice then. A historically significant development for our country," said government spokesman Stelios Petsas.
The demarcation of maritime zones between Greece and Italy has been pending since 1977 and changes the data regarding the demarcation of maritime zones with Albania.
Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias spoke of a "historic day" in his joint statements with his Italian counterpart Luigi Di Maio, after the signing of the maritime border demarcation agreement between Greece and Italy.
[su_youtube_advanced url="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W2lTKRDhlI4&feature=emb_title" width="300" height="200" theme="light" title="Greece and Italy sign agreement on Exclusive Economic Zone in the Ionian Sea"]Dendias said this agreement confirms the law of islands in sea areas, and guarantees the rights of Greek fishermen. Sending a message to Turkey who refuses to follow international law to settle the sea border with Greece, Dendias stressed that establishing zones is "achieved with valid agreements not with non-existent agreements, such as the one between Turkey and Sarraj, and certainly not with unilateral coordinated deposits."
Fayez al-Sarraj, an ethnic Turk, signed an agreement with Turkey late last year to steal Greece's maritime space with no consideration for the United Nations Charter Law of the Sea that Greece and Italy used to finalise their maritime borders.
Dendias also said that he had discussed with the Italian Foreign Minister about the escalation of Turkish aggression. Turkey recently published a map of the location where it will begin drilling for natural resources in Greece's continental shelf.
These actions highlight the destabilising role of Turkey, he added, stressing that Greece is responding methodically under international law that defines "red lines."
He also announced that Greece will lift any travel restrictions on Italy by the end of the month.
Di Maio expressed the gratitude of the Greek people and government for their solidarity and support in tackling the pandemic. He also expressed absolute satisfaction with the decision to lift all restrictions on the entry of Italian tourists by the end of the month.
As he said, the Athens-Rome cooperation is close and beneficial both in terms of foreign policy (Syria, the Balkans, etc.) and in the ongoing negotiations within the EU to tackle the economic crisis.
"We are pleased with the decision to lift restrictions on Italians in Greece," he said, noting that Italian tourism is also opening up to the world. He also stressed that Rome's position is to have a unified policy and not a fragmentation of the tourism market.
Regarding the distribution of European resources, he noted that there should be close cooperation between the Member States so that they can be directed to the areas that are most in need, i.e. those that have been hit the hardest by the pandemic.
Referring to illegal immigration, Di Maio stressed that the EU needs a system of equal responsibility for all Member States, so that everyone can raise the burden of flow management to the same degree.
He also spoke about the EU enlargement process, expressing full support for accession negotiations with Greece's northern Slavic neighbour and Albania.
