“I want to be clear. The search, as well as the laying of an electric cable, is permitted and absolutely guaranteed by international law. The rules of international law absolutely allow the search and laying of an electric cable, and therefore there could be no obstruction by another state. After all, this proves the fact that the specific project for the electrical interconnection of Greece – Cyprus has been approved by the European Commission which is known to go through a very severe crisis before giving any amount from the Community budget”.

This is what the Minister of Foreign Affairs said in Parliament, George Gerapetritis answering a relevant topical question of the president of NIKI, Dimitris Natsios.

“The intention of the Greek government is to continue and complete this project. Any geopolitical risk we do not consider under any circumstances to be able to prevent the continuation of the project for the electrical interconnection between Greece and Cyprus. The Greek state considers that there will be no problem regarding what I call geopolitical risk”, the Greek Minister of Foreign Affairs pointed out.

Mr. Gerapetritis characterized the Greece-Cyprus electrical interconnection as “a project of great importance because it removes the energy isolation of the Megalonisos and in fact will give a great relief to the Cypriot citizens in terms of electricity prices which are very expensive” .

“This is a project of common interest of the EU, which provided its protection to this program and of course partially financed it. The question of the feasibility of the project is not disputed. There is a technical issue of financial viability, it has to do with the regulatory environment and that is under discussion between the parties. It primarily depends on the regulatory framework of Cyprus, for this reason there will be meetings in the near future”, he said.

For his part, Mr. Natsios accused the government of a “secret foreign policy”, but also of “giving in to Turkey’s provocative and illegal claims, as happened in Kasos”, and called on Mr Gerapetritis to explain “why not our country extends its territorial waters to 12 miles” and to clarify “what are the national red lines in the Ionian and the Aegean”.

“Because in the public discourse there are news which are manifestly non-existent, they have absolutely no basis in reality, and it is good in any case to keep reservations about various publications which are figments of imagination, have absolutely no response to reality and even more create national risks rather than informing”, countered Mr. Gerapetritis and added:

“I will be clear. Our sovereignty, our sovereign rights constitute our red lines in their entirety. The expansion of our territorial waters is a sovereign, inalienable, inalienable right of the Greek state and will be exercised in the manner and at the time that will be judged by the Greek democracy to be right and appropriate.”

At the same time, he categorically denied that “there was any recognition by Greece of any sovereign right or claim on the part of Turkey for the investigation in Kasos”, pointing out that “it was completed absolutely 100% based on its planning and absolutely no Turkish claim was recognized” .

“There was absolutely no retreat on the part of the Greek side and no right of Turkey on the territory was recognized in any way. There is the Turkish-Libyan memorandum, which is illegal and non-existent, and Turkey is making claims from it. Greece does not recognize it and we consider that there is no claim. Indeed, there was a presence of Turkish ships in the area, it is Turkey’s regular policy to have its ships present whenever there is movement which, according to Turkey, touches its own continental shelf and EEZ”, he said.

As the Greek Minister of Foreign Affairs said, “Greece maintains a nationally strong and proud stance and we are not going to renounce in any way either our sovereignty or our sovereign rights”.

“It goes without saying that Greece will remain on the national line. In terms of its diplomatic power it is at the highest point it has ever been, it has an extremely good position on the international stage, it has a very strong national defense and a strong growing economy,” he noted.

Then, he rejected Mr. Natsios’ points about secret diplomacy, arguing that, every time the Turkish president meets the Greek prime minister, a communique is always issued and he himself immediately afterwards gives an interview to inform what the results of the discussions were.

“There was no case in which the Greek people were not fully, transparently and in-depth informed after any meeting between the two leaders. Secret diplomacy does not exist and will not exist,” he emphasized.

Mr. Gerapetritis also emphasized Greece-Egypt relations, stressing that they are of “strategic importance, they are not affected, they are not attacked and they are not degraded”.

“Greece wants all countries to be in a cordial diplomatic relationship because it is in the interest of regional and international peace that countries can discuss and not be in a state of rivalry and hostility. However, a strategic relationship in a wider region can only exist between two states and the relationship between Greece and Egypt is strategic, it is not affected, it is not attacked and it is not degraded.

I am in constant discussion and communication with my Egyptian counterpart and I can assure you that the strategic relationship between Greece and Egypt is at its peak and will continue to be at this high level,” he said.

Mr Gerapetritis defended the continuation of the Greek-Turkish dialogue, saying:

“Neither I nor any foreign minister could ever be so naive as to believe that Turkey will abandon its fundamental positions overnight.

Besides, the fact that we maintain our basic positions is also an admission that has been incorporated into the Athens Declaration. What we are saying is that we should proceed with realism, with prudence, with prudence, step by step in order to be able to restore, as far as possible, our relations with Turkey. I think we will all agree that having good relations with all our neighbors contributes to the peace and prosperity of our country and our region. I don’t think there is any MP who would say it is not important to be able to talk with Turkey. The fact that we are talking does not mean, and will never mean, that we make any concession in relation to the rights recognized by international law”.

Finally, the Greek Minister of Foreign Affairs underlined that “an agreement at some point in relation to the delimitation of these zones would in fact mean the resolution of the main underlying issue we have with Turkey and would in fact ensure a long and sustainable peace in our region ».

“This could only be done if there was full respect for international law, to which our country historically attaches great importance.

Greece is today in a position of power so that it can discuss these issues and – respecting international law and supporting national lines without any concessions – discuss and bring solutions that will be beneficial for the Greek people because the crucial thing is that we are in a period of peace and that the Greek citizens feel safe, but also that the next generations find a Greece that will be nationally proud, secure in peace and prosperity”, Mr. Gerapetritis concluded.