An incident off the coast of Kasos involving the Italian research vessel Ievoli Relume and five Turkish warships tested the resilience of Greek-Turkish relations. The Turkish presence aimed to assert that the area, where the vessel was conducting research, falls within Turkey’s continental shelf. In response, Athens maintained that the ship was operating mainly within Greek territorial waters and that the area is part of the Greece-Egypt agreement of 2020, which partially delineates the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). This EEZ intersects with the controversial Turkish-Libyan Memorandum, which Turkey is trying to legitimize.

According to verified information from protothema.gr, the incident and the potential escalation triggered the Greek-Turkish disengagement mechanism at a high political level. Diplomatic sources suggested that “appropriate consultations are taking place in anticipation of the completion of the survey according to the existing schedule.” These “consultations” were not at the bureaucratic level or the level of general staffs, but rather the Greek-Turkish “red phone” was effectively used to facilitate disengagement.

The Italian vessel, owned by a French company, is expected to complete its survey tomorrow, according to an updated Greek NAVTEX issued today. The government expects no further complications. Throughout the day, there has been an open communication channel between the Prime Minister’s Office, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Defense, and the general staffs.

Overall, the Greek side does not underestimate the incident, nor do they ignore its occurrence, as it is unprecedented. This incident adds to a series of provocative Turkish actions, from the celebration in the occupied territories to direct attacks by Erdogan on Nikos Dendias and today’s comments by Turkish President Erdogan’s coalition partner, Devlet Bahçeli, questioning the sovereignty of Greek islands.