Libya Approves Deal Over $100 Billion Gas Zone

The eastern Mediterranean landscape shifted significantly on Tuesday when Libya’s parliament voted unanimously to approve a maritime agreement with Turkey. This legislative action formalizes a direct economic corridor linking the two nations, a move that is expected to intensify existing tensions with Greece. By reversing a previous political stance, the Libyan legislature has provided the legal framework necessary for Ankara and Tripoli to proceed with joint exploitation of the region’s resources.

The financial stakes behind this decision are substantial. Recent geological surveys have identified large oil and gas deposits in the waters between the two countries. Estimates suggest that the natural gas reserves beneath the seabed could be worth several hundred billion US dollars. Both Ankara and Tripoli aim to secure their respective economic rights to these assets. The agreement allows the two nations to manage and exploit these resources jointly, creating a new axis of economic interest in the area.

This vote represents a major diplomatic reversal for the eastern Libyan government. In 2019, the rival administration in the east opposed a similar corridor that Turkey had negotiated with the UN-recognized Government of National Accord in the west. However, political dynamics have evolved, and the eastern parliament has now backed the deal. The Turkish Foreign Ministry welcomed the outcome, signaling a strengthened partnership between the two states.

The geographic implications of the corridor have drawn immediate criticism from Athens. The proposed route effectively bypasses several Greek islands, including Crete, Karpathos, and Rhodes. Greece maintains that it holds a comprehensive exclusive economic zone around these territories. Consequently, the Greek Foreign Ministry announced its firm opposition to the accord. Athens stated that the European Union supports this position, with the EU labeling the memorandum null and void due to its alleged violation of the sovereign rights of third states.

European leadership has echoed this sentiment. Kaja Kallas, the EU’s high representative for foreign affairs and security policy, commented on the Libyan vote via social media. She stressed that the agreement infringes upon the sovereign rights of third states. This alignment between Athens and Brussels suggests that the dispute is not merely bilateral but has become a broader regional issue involving European interests in maritime law and energy security.

The core of the legal dispute centers on the interpretation of island rights under international law. Greece relies heavily on the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, specifically Article 121. This article grants inhabited islands that support their own economic life the same exclusive economic zone rights as mainland territory. Athens argues that this provision covers major islands like Crete, Rhodes, and Lesbos. It also cites a 2022 International Court of Justice ruling involving Colombia and Nicaragua, which established that overlapping maritime interests require fair demarcation based on coastlines and geography.

Turkey offers a contrasting legal perspective. Ankara argues that the specific geography of the Mediterranean warrants special consideration. The Turkish position holds that if every small Greek island near its coast received a full exclusive economic zone, Turkey would be largely cut off from the open sea. Furthermore, because Ankara never signed the UN convention, it does not accept arbitration by a UN tribunal. Even legal experts remain divided on how a fair division of these waters should be calculated.

The political context in Libya has changed drastically since the original 2019 proposal. At that time, civil war was raging, and Turkey had intervened militarily to support the government in Tripoli against the eastern forces led by General Khalifa Hifter. Since then, a Turkish charm offensive has led to a rapprochement with Hifter’s camp. Turkish firms have secured reconstruction contracts worth billions, and the state oil company TPAO is collaborating with Libya’s National Oil Corporation on seismic surveys. Turkey also provides weapons and training to Hifter’s forces, a strategy that helps push back against Egyptian and Russian influence in the eastern part of the country.

The new corridor also poses a direct threat to the planned EastMed pipeline. This project was designed to transport gas from Israel and Cyprus through Greece to enhance EU energy security. The new maritime route cuts across the planned path of this pipeline. Turkey has argued that any cable or pipeline projects on its claimed continental shelf require its consent. In the long term, this agreement may split the region into two distinct blocs: a Turkey-Libya axis and an EU-supported grouping comprising Greece, Cyprus, Egypt, and Israel.