Minister of Foreign Affairs George Gerapetritis’ interview with “15 Minutes with George Papachristos” vidcast by “TA NEA” newspaper (01.09.2026)

JOURNALIST: Hello. "15 Minutes" has the pleasure of hosting today the Minister of Foreign Affairs, George Gerapetritis, a man who is currently in the news. There is all that is happening around us. The geopolitical game is in full swing, so the meeting with the Minister is particularly interesting, as we shall see. Welcome.

G. GERAPETRITIS: It is good to be here. Thank you for the honor.

JOURNALIST: Well, let's start with the difficult issues. A little while ago, Ankara issued a NAVTEX, reserving an area south of Kastelorizo, it is taking out a vessel, it says, a research vessel. The calm waters have been very turbulent lately. Where is this all going?

G. GERAPETRITIS: First of all, let us evaluate how the situation is at the moment and how it has developed over the last three years. The decision taken by the Prime Minister and the Government Council for Foreign Affairs and Defense (KYSEA), and implemented by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, was to engage in a structured dialogue with Türkiye.

JOURNALIST: The Athens Declaration, that is.

G. GERAPETRITIS: Correct. For the first time, Greece and Türkiye sat down at the same table within a clearly defined process for cooperation. This cooperation, I must say, as we assess it today, has yielded certain positive results. We have had a very significant reduction in violations, we have had a very significant reduction in migratory flows, bilateral trade has grown, while tourism between the two countries has also increased. It did not yield results in other areas, such as the discussion on the delimitation of the maritime zones, that produces…

JOURNALIST: And the continental shelf.

G. GERAPETRITIS: The continental shelf and the Exclusive Economic Zone are the issues that produce, as you know, the tensions, and the issues that we have been trying to resolve for fifty years.

JOURNALIST: Which we never will.

G. GERAPETRITIS: I am not so pessimistic as to believe that we will never resolve it. I believe that it is the obligation of every government to pursue, always on the basis of International Law...

JOURNALIST: Mr. Gerapetritis, this is all very nice. You are a diplomat by virtue of your office, though not by profession. Because in reality you are not a diplomat, you are a Professor, a lawyer, a constitutional scholar, etc. The question is how to resolve this, when they demand an arm and a leg, so to speak, and we say "listen, we are only discussing the continental shelf and the delimitation of the EEZ." How can we find a solution?

G. GERAPETRITIS: They are two different things and I would like to clarify them so that the listeners can also understand the true dimensions. The issue that we currently have to manage is to initiate a discussion that will lead to the delimitation. This is not something that we say. The Law of the Sea requires States with opposite coasts to negotiate their maritime delimitation. It is a bilateral issue. So, there we have a fundamental difference at the very start, which is what the issues to discuss are. Greece says that there is only one issue, the delimitation of the Exclusive Economic Zone and the continental shelf. The Turks say that there are more issues, which are interrelated with this issue.

JOURNALIST: Gray zones, for instance.

G. GERAPETRITIS: The gray zones, the demilitarization, they are issues that have been on the table for decades and have not been withdrawn, nor did we expect them to be withdrawn. This is a preliminary position. We will have to find the middle ground, which is very difficult in this case. Greece is not going to deviate from its basic position, that there is only one difference. And for this reason, what we always say is that if we sit down and discuss this one difference and ultimately reach a special agreement to refer the issue to international jurisdiction, before the International Court of Justice in The Hague, then we can resolve this long-standing difference of ours. If you are asking whether we are close to such a development, the answer is that we are not close.

JOURNALIST: If we go to The Hague…. why are we not close? Because if we go to The Hague, everyone knows that, there is a precedent, a legal precedent, and we will lose. That is it. Isn't that true?

G. GERAPETRITIS: The truth is that there is a settled case law, which concerns the delimitation of maritime zones. For us, the key case law, which is in our favor, is that all islands have full sovereign rights, that is, they have full effect on the delimitation of the continental shelf and the Exclusive Economic Zone. This case law is unequivocal. There is an interesting point about the Convention. Türkiye disputes this and for this reason it has not signed and ratified the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, the 1982 Montego Bay Convention. It is the international convention with the largest number of signatories worldwide than any other international convention, except for the UN Convention itself. Therefore, it is understood that it gives rise not only to treaty obligations but also to customary international law. But let us look into the essence of the matter. What is the essence? That we can indeed try to reduce tensions, to improve bilateral relations, to preserve stability. There will never be absolute tranquility in our relations - and I say this with full cognizance - if we do not delimit our maritime zones. This may happen today, tomorrow, in a few years. But the Greek people must comprehend that only then will we have long-term peace in our region.

JOURNALIST: Three years after the Athens Declaration. Would you co-sign it today?

G. GERAPETRITIS: Yes, certainly. And to fully answer, I would like to stress one simple thing. We may, in fact, have had increasing tension recently due to the aggression that Türkiye is displaying in certain areas. However, in the last three years, while there have been tectonic changes in the world, while we have two wars in the region, while civil wars are raging in sub-Saharan Africa that could lead to a huge migration crisis, at the worst moment - and I say this with full knowledge of the facts - since the Second World War, Greece and Türkiye have managed to avoid a major crisis in the Aegean and the Eastern Mediterranean. For me, this is important.

JOURNALIST: No? What was Kasos then?

G. GERAPETRITIS: There has been no major crisis. What happened in Kasos, I have said many times and I say it again now, is that we had a site survey and cable laying program. You know, it is a European program.

JOURNALIST: Which Türkiye disputed, saying we have drawn up the Turkish-Libyan memorandum and the cable cannot pass through here.

G. GERAPETRITIS: Türkiye 's positions regarding the so-called and legally baseless "blue homeland doctrine" and Turkish-Libyan memorandum, as you know, predate my term of office. What I want to stress, however, is that these long-standing Turkish claims do not hinder the progress of the project. And I am telling you this in full honesty. What is happening…

JOURNALIST: No…

G. GERAPETRITIS: Go ahead, please, I will gladly answer. I always answer, as you know.

JOURNALIST: I know. Well, recently it was leaked to the press, to reputable newspapers, for example "Kathimerini", that a formula was found to ensure Türkiye's acquiescence: for the French company, which has undertaken and participates in the construction consortium, to inform Türkiye that "you know, we will pass the cable through these coordinates". Isn't this an indirect admission that "yes, we recognize Türkiye's right to have an opinion on areas that belong to Greece"?

G. GERAPETRITIS: Categorically, no. Let me be clear. Greece, from its own standpoint…

JOURNALIST: No…

G. GERAPETRITIS: Let me finish. Since you raised the issue, let me tell you exactly what the situation is. What we are saying is that this project passes through the Greek continental shelf and through an undelimited Exclusive Economic Zone. For this reason, I return to the point that, at some stage, there needs to be delimitation with all neighbouring countries, as there has already been a partial delimitation with Egypt. Now, let me turn to the issue of licensing. The project is authorised by Greece, within whose maritime jurisdiction it falls. It will never be licensed by any other country. In any case, International Law...

JOURNALIST: Will the other country be notified?

G. GERAPETRITIS: There is no issue of notification and licensing...

JOURNALIST: That is what Ankara is demanding.

G. GERAPETRITIS: Let me finish. First, we do not know what it is demanding, unless you have some inside information about what Türkiye is asking for.

JOURNALIST: Not inside information, journalistic information.

G. GERAPETRITIS: Let me tell you this: in any case, International Law provides for very clear notification procedures. NAVTEX notices are issued precisely in order to inform all vessels navigating in the area, as well as neighbouring States, for navigational safety purposes. Notification is therefore legitimate and is provided for under International Law. International Law will be followed to the letter. Neither Greece nor France will seek authorisation.

JOURNALIST: Another question: you have been strongly criticised, even within the government, over the much-discussed policy of calm waters. However, the most significant criticism comes from two prominent and historic figures of your political party, Mr. Samaras and former Prime Minister, Mr. Kostas Karamanlis. What is your response to them?

G. GERAPETRITIS: First, I respect their records. They have both contributed to Greek political life and to the country, and I would never question their work. They have every right to hold their own views. However, there are also certain factual realities, particularly with regard to Mr. Samaras, who is voicing criticism not based on any objective evidence whatsoever. I think the contrast is clear. Today, we are indeed going through a period in which, for the past three years, we have established a channel of communication and have been engaging in dialogue with Türkiye. What has happened during these three years? Greece has undoubtedly strengthened its diplomatic footprint. The alliances it has forged, the positions it has secured in international organisations over the past three years, are unprecedented. Just yesterday, we signed a strategic defense agreement with Israel, which provides us with even greater guarantees, and for this reason, I believe that we are in a far more advantageous position than we were three years ago. But what else has happened over the past three years? For the first time, Greece has put its own arguments on the table.

Türkiye has had the "blue homeland", demilitarisation, grey zones -all these arguments- on the table for decades.

JOURNALIST: Indeed. Including during the Samaras and Karamanlis' governments, you mean.

G. GERAPETRITIS: Let me explain in detail. Türkiye was the one putting issues on the table, and we were forced to follow. That is no longer the case. The opposite is now true. Greece puts forward its arguments and Türkiye reacts, the way it reacts. Let me put it simply: Maritime Spatial Planning, marine parks, Chevron-Exxon, strengthening international alliances -all these developments over the past three years have, in effect, placed Greece in the driving seat. We have the initiative. When Mr. Samaras levels his strong criticism of foreign policy - I repeat, I respect it. I am the only one who accepts criticism from any side and with any degree of intensity - but we must know the facts. Mr. Samaras not only engaged in dialogue with Mr. Erdoğan, while today he believes that we should not even sit at the same table, disregarding the fact that, in such a complex world, not talking to your neighbour can be disastrous.

So, let me make the following point. Mr. Samaras was in dialogue with Türkiye. He went to Türkiye in 2013 and signed twenty-five agreements. In 2014, he met Mr. Erdoğan in Cardiff -and in 2014 we had 2,500 violations- he was thus engaging in dialogue and reaching agreements with Mr. Erdoğan. What is the difference? Mr. Mitsotakis went to Ankara and had the courage -the first Prime Minister to do so since the restoration of democracy- to raise the issue of the casus belli directly with Mr. Erdoğan. For the first time.

Conversely, however, and let us say this as well, when Mr. Samaras was in Istanbul in 2013, he heard Mr. Erdoğan use the famous expression "kazan kazan" without reacting. So, anyone who criticises should first engage in some self-criticism. We are prepared to accept criticism, however strong. What I am saying is that, during these three years in which we have maintained this channel of communication with Türkiye, we have managed to reduce tensions, reduce violations and reduce irregular migration flows. At the same time, Greece is now in the strongest diplomatic position it has ever been in.

JOURNALIST: We understand. You support the approach you are pursuing. I understand that.

G. GERAPETRITIS: It is not my approach. It is the approach determined by the government, and in particular by the Government Council for Foreign Affairs and Defense (KYSEA). It is a collective policy.

JOURNALIST: All right. Will the Prime Minister meet Mr. Erdoğan in New York, or somewhere else soon?

G. GERAPETRITIS: At present, there is no prospect of such a meeting. No invitation has been extended. So, for the time being, there is no such meeting scheduled.

JOURNALIST: What about a meeting between you and Mr. Fidan?

G. GERAPETRITIS: We have not scheduled one during the UN General Assembly, but it is very likely that there will be a meeting in the coming period. We meet from time to time.

JOURNALIST: Why have your meetings become less frequent, whereas you used to meet often? Is that related to the tensions?

G. GERAPETRITIS: I do not think there has ever been another government that has held regular meetings of this kind. The one and only thing we are trying to do is normalise our relationship with Türkiye. As a person, I believe in Aristotelian mean. I believe that extremes, whatever their origin or direction, are harmful. The only thing that may be of added value is moderation.

I want to say this in closing: I am someone who owes a debt to my country. There are two types of public figures: those who feel that they owe something to their country and those who feel that their country owes them something. I belong to the first category, because everything I have become in life -I started from nothing- I owe to my country: to the public school, the public university, and to my career as a public servant, supported by public scholarships.

So, I will continue to serve my country from whatever position I may be entrusted with, and I believe that we are doing something good for our country.

JOURNALIST: History will show that.

G. GERAPETRITIS: By which we will all be judged.

JOURNALIST: Thank you very much for being here.

G. GERAPETRITIS: It was a great pleasure and honour. Thank you very much!

JOURNALIST: And thank you all for watching us. Goodbye!

September 1, 2026