Summary:

On 4 June 2025, multiple media outlets, including Middle East Eye, reported on Greece’s efforts to lobby Egypt to prevent the eastern Libya-based House of Representatives (HoR) from ratifying a new Turkish-Libyan maritime agreement.

The agreement was previously signed by the Tripoli-based Government of National Accord (GNA) and Turkey in 2019 to demarcate shared maritime borders. However, the agreement ignored Greece’s claims to exclusive economic zones (EEZ), including via major Greek islands like Crete and Rhodes.

Greece has refused to accept this agreement, which it countered by signing its own agreement with Egypt while the eastern Libya-based Haftar and the HoR have rejected Turkish maneuvers with their Tripoli-based rival.

Days earlier, the HoR reversed its opposition to the agreement by establishing a technical committee dedicated to reviewing the deal.

Outlook: 

The shift of the east-based position on the agreement and the move toward considering its ratification is likely a result of the recent rapprochement between Haftar and Turkey. Adoption of the agreement was likely discussed during Saddam Haftar’s visit to Ankara earlier in April that also concluded in business agreements between the two governments.

The policy shift could also indicate movement toward an agreement on sharing influence in Libya between Turkey and Russia, with the latter increasingly dependent on Turkish cooperation to transfer equipment to Africa after the fall of the Assad regime in Syria.

The ratification of the maritime borders deal is likely to face resistance, not only from Greece, but from other European states seeking to prevent Turkey from hindering the EastMed pipeline project.

Turkey, on the other hand, is likely to continue pushing for the implementation of the agreement to advance its plan to reinforce its position as a regional energy hub.

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