Libya’s House of Representatives voted unanimously Tuesday, Oct. 20, to endorse a 2019 maritime memorandum with Türkiye, renewing objections from Greece and the European Union over the pact’s implications for regional maritime rights.
The memorandum identifies maritime boundaries between the countries’ continental shelves and exclusive economic zones. The Libyan News Agency says it also calls for diplomatic efforts to settle disputes and allows the parties to negotiate joint development of certain natural resources.
Türkiye and Libya’s then-Government of National Accord signed the memorandum in Istanbul on Nov. 27, 2019. The U.N. Treaty Collection records Dec. 8 that year as its entry-into-force date and says it was registered three days later.
The vote also repealed Decision No. 1 of 2020, which opposed ratification of two memoranda with Türkiye, and Decision No. 6, which severed political relations with Ankara, the Libyan News Agency reported. The action reversed the House’s 2020 opposition to the pact.
Greece rejected the vote, saying the agreement overlooks Greek islands’ maritime entitlements. Athens also argued that the geography between Libya and Türkiye does not justify the boundary.
The European Union’s High Representative said the memorandum infringes the sovereign rights of third states and cannot produce legal consequences for them. In a joint statement, European Council President António Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen reaffirmed the bloc’s solidarity with Greece and Cyprus.
The dispute centers in part on how islands factor into maritime claims. Greece cites its islands’ entitlements under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and customary international law. Türkiye is not a party to UNCLOS; its representative told a 2019 U.N. General Assembly discussion that the convention did not adequately address distinctive geographic settings.
DW reported that Athens also cited a 2022 International Court of Justice ruling in Nicaragua v. Colombia. That case concerned a separate Caribbean dispute, where the court found Colombia had violated Nicaragua’s sovereign rights in its exclusive economic zone; it did not decide the Libya-Türkiye boundary question. Türkiye’s Foreign Ministry welcomed the House vote, saying the pact safeguards both countries’ interests under international law and the principle of equity.
