Gerapetritis: Greece’s sovereignty is ‘not open to any form of negotiation’

“Our sovereignty is unshakeable, inalienable and not open to any form of negotiation,” Foreign Minister George Gerapetritis stressed on Sunday, speaking on SKAI television’s morning news programme “Kalimera”. Regarding the issue of marine wildlife parks, he indicated that “the Greek strategy for the protection of the environment will continued unobstructed, on the basis of our planning.”

“We will do that which must be done. And we will do it not because this arises from our sovereign rights. Environmental initiatives are not related to the exercise of our sovereignty…What we want to do is to have a better planet and, in reality, you are well aware that our own region is at this moment at the epicentre of the climate crisis,” the minister pointed out.

Asked about Turkish press reports claiming that Turkiye is planning its own marine parks in the Aegean, Gerapetritis said that Turkiye was free to decide about whatever lay within its own sovereign sphere, noting that the exercise of sovereignty could not affect another state in any way and “it is therefore self-evident that this will have no negative effect on us.” Asked whether Turkiye was able to announce a marine park north of Crete outside the six-mile zone, Gerapetritis said “the answer is clear and it is that it cannot”.

He noted that Greece’s foreign policy “proceeds on the basis of principles and is not defined by others,” stressing that Greece remains dedicated to international law. “Our aim is to have a foreign policy and a country filled with self-confidence and I should like to say, as the head of Greek diplomacy, that my conviction at this time is that we are … not simply heard but that our opinion, I consider, counts for a great deal in the international firmament,” he added.

Gerapetritis also answered questions about North Macedonia and its observance of the Prespa Agreement, noting that one of the features of the agreement was that it had no provision at present for unilateral termination, as it had been ratified by the parliaments of both countries.

“Even if North Macedonia or Greece desired to unilaterally modify the treaty, this could not happen,” he pointed out, adding that the government was “prepared for all scenarios”. Regarding the failure by North Macedonia’s president to use her country’s constitutional name during her swearing-in ceremony, he noted that this should be put into context.

“The government in North Macedonia has not yet been sworn in, the prime minister has not been sworn in, therefore there is no one to talk with at this time…the action of the President of North Macedonia was a blatant violation of the Prespa Agreement. On the other hand, we realise that there is no political leadership in North Macedonia at this time, we still have a caretaker government…as soon as this government exists we will do what is necessary.”

The minister concluded by criticising the statements of main opposition SYRIZA-Progressive Alliance leader Stefanos Kasselakis about Hamas during the latter’s visit to the West Bank, noting that foreign policy issues did not lend themselves to “simplistic” approaches. He stressed that Hamas did not express the Palestinian people and their struggle for survival and recognition, while emphasising the need for a solution as soon as possible to end the bloodshed. He said the future for Palestine must be that envisaged in UN Security Council resolutions, including the recognition of a Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital and the pre-1967 borders. This future government could on no account, however, include terrorist elements such as Hamas, Gerapetritis underlined.