The MED7 group of southern European countries, expressed its full support and solidarity towards Greece and Cyprus in the face of repeated infringements on their sovereignty and sovereign rights, as well as confrontational actions by Turkey.
The Euro-Mediterranean MED7 Conference was hosted by France on Thursday.
The Declaration of Ajaccio that was signed by the leaders of Greece, France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Malta and Cyprus, note that all countries must comply with International Law of the Sea and resolve differences through dialogue.
The seven leaders also welcomed the mediation effort of High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs Josep Borrell and Germany to achieve a resumption of the dialogue between Greece and Turkey on the maritime zones issue.
Εάν η Τουρκία θέλει πραγματικά έναν ειλικρινή διάλογο με την Ελλάδα, με την Κύπρο, με την ΕΕ, πρέπει να το αποδείξει στην πράξη. Να σταματήσει αμέσως μονομερείς ενέργειες, να δώσει πειστικά δείγματα ότι σέβεται απαρέγκλιτα και όχι επιλεκτικά τους διεθνείς κανόνες. #Med7 pic.twitter.com/8rzkSMW5Fo
— Prime Minister GR (@PrimeministerGR) September 10, 2020
They also said they regret that Turkey has not responded to the EU's repeated calls to end its unilateral and illegal actions in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Aegean.
"We reaffirm our determination to use all adequate means at the disposal of the European Union in response to these confrontational actions," reads the text of conclusions, and continues that "in line with the latest Informal Meeting of EU Foreign Ministers (Gymnich), we agree to speed up work on the additional listings based on the proposals tabled so far, with a view to a rapid adoption.
EN DIRECT | Conférence de presse des membres du Med7, l’alliance des pays du Sud de l’Union européenne. https://t.co/efhnTn8uIi
— Emmanuel Macron (@EmmanuelMacron) September 10, 2020
"We maintain that in absence of progress in engaging Turkey into a dialogue and unless it ends its unilateral activities, the EU is ready to develop a list of further restrictive measures that could be discussed at the European Council on September 24-25," the Declaration of Ajaccio clarifies.
