Egypt on Thursday announced that it had signed a bilateral agreement with Greece on the "delimitation of maritime jurisdictions" between the two countries.
Speaking at a joint press conference in the capital Cairo with his Greek counterpart Nikos Dendias, Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry said the deal "opens new horizons for economic cooperation with Greece."
Dendias, for his part, said the maritime agreement with Cairo was "legitimate" and "reflects the dimensions of cooperation between the two countries in combating threats in the region."
Earlier in the day, a statement by Egypt's Foreign Ministry said Shoukry met Dendias in Cairo to discuss the bilateral agreement.
The 12th technical meeting on the issue was held in Cairo in June, with the sides agreeing to continue talks towards a deal.
Libya slams Greece, Egypt 'so-called' maritime deal
Libya late Thursday condemned a maritime demarcation deal between Greece and Egypt in the Eastern Mediterranean.
“Libya will not allow violations of its maritime rights,” foreign ministry spokesman Mohammed Al-Qablawi said on Twitter.
Al-Qablawi reiterated Libya’s commitment to a memorandum of understanding concerning the delimitation of maritime jurisdiction signed with Turkey.
On November 27, Turkey and Libya have signed "Restriction of Marine Jurisdictions" agreements. The agreement determined a portion of Turkey’s maritime jurisdictions in the region.
Libya urges states bordering the Mediterranean to act in accord with the principles of international law, Al-Qablawi also stressed.
Egypt announced earlier Thursday it signed a bilateral agreement with Greece on the delimitation of maritime jurisdictions between the two countries.
The Turkish Foreign Ministry slammed the "so-called agreement" in a statement, asserting that Greece and Egypt had no mutual sea border and that the deal was "null and void" for Ankara.
It added that the demarcated area in the agreement was located on Turkey's continental shelf, as Ankara had reported to the UN.
'Greece, Egypt violate Turkey's, Libya's rights'
Turkey's top diplomat on Thursday said Greece and Egypt violated the rights and continental shelves of Turkey and Libya by signing a maritime deal on exclusive economic zones (EEZ) in the Eastern Mediterranean.
In an exclusive interview with Anadolu Agency, Mevlut Cavusoglu stressed that the text and map of the agreement had yet to be revealed, adding: "However, it's obvious by the given coordinates that the deal not only violates the rights and continental shelf of Turkey but also of Libya."
"Hence, an agreement that violates our continental shelf, which we have reported to the UN, is null and void and the reason why we've come to this point is that countries like Greece and the Greek Cypriot administration, are trying to sign agreements with Egypt and Israel while ignoring Turkey," Cavusoglu added.
"We'll continue to show them and the world that this agreement is null and void on the table and in the field."
Egypt announced earlier on Thursday that it signed a bilateral agreement with Greece on the delimitation of maritime jurisdictions between the two countries in the Eastern Mediterranean.
The Turkish Foreign Ministry slammed the "so-called agreement" in a statement, asserting that Greece and Egypt had no mutual sea border and that the deal was "null and void" for Ankara.
It added that the demarcated area in the agreement was located on Turkey's continental shelf, as Ankara had reported to the UN.