Turkey, Greece May Resume Talks over Disputed Waters

Turkey and Greece are at odds over the limits of their continental shelves, energy rights, air space and the status of some islands. (AFP)
Turkey and Greece are at odds over the limits of their continental shelves, energy rights, air space and the status of some islands. (AFP)
TT

Turkey, Greece May Resume Talks over Disputed Waters

Turkey and Greece are at odds over the limits of their continental shelves, energy rights, air space and the status of some islands. (AFP)
Turkey and Greece are at odds over the limits of their continental shelves, energy rights, air space and the status of some islands. (AFP)

Turkey and Greece said on Monday they wanted to resume suspended exploratory talks over territorial claims in the Mediterranean Sea which brought them close to conflict last year.

Plans for talks last year foundered after disagreement over a Turkish seismic exploration vessel deployed to disputed waters, but the ship has since returned.

"So Greece has no excuse right now," Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu told reporters, saying he was inviting Greece for talks by the end of January on all issues.

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said his government would attend once a date was set.

"We seek a fertile and productive relationship with Turkey," he told reporters in Lisbon, saying officials would have to be in contact formally. "It's probably about time we stopped chit-chatting and sat down and agreed on a date."

The two NATO military alliance members are at odds over the limits of their continental shelves, energy rights, air space and the status of some islands.

Their dispute threatened to spill into open conflict when Turkish and Greek warships collided in August as they shadowed Turkey's Oruc Reis vessel as it surveyed for oil and gas west of Cyprus.

Ankara and Athens have held 60 rounds of talks between 2002-2016, but resumption of negotiations has been complicated by what both sides are prepared to discuss.

Greece said on Monday it was willing to talk about demarcation of an Exclusive Economic Zone and the continental shelf. It was not immediately clear whether Ankara would insist on other issues being included.

Cavusoglu said he was ready to meet Greek counterpart Niko Dendias in Tirana after Albania offered to mediate. "I hope Greece does not turn down this opportunity," he said.

Under pressure from some European Union (EU) members including Germany, Greece had indicated it could resume talks on Jan. 11, the Turkish minister added.



Israel Arrests 2 Citizens on Suspicion of Working for Iran

 Iranians walk past an anti-Israel billboard bearing a sentence in Farsi reading "Palestine is victorious", at Tehran's Palestine square on January 22, 2025. (AFP)
Iranians walk past an anti-Israel billboard bearing a sentence in Farsi reading "Palestine is victorious", at Tehran's Palestine square on January 22, 2025. (AFP)
TT

Israel Arrests 2 Citizens on Suspicion of Working for Iran

 Iranians walk past an anti-Israel billboard bearing a sentence in Farsi reading "Palestine is victorious", at Tehran's Palestine square on January 22, 2025. (AFP)
Iranians walk past an anti-Israel billboard bearing a sentence in Farsi reading "Palestine is victorious", at Tehran's Palestine square on January 22, 2025. (AFP)

Israeli authorities say they have arrested two Israeli citizens for allegedly conducting missions on behalf of Iran, the latest in a string of similar cases announced in recent months.

A statement from the Israeli police and the Shin Ben internal security agency on Monday said that Yuri Eliasfov and Georgi Andreev, residents of northern Israel, were in contact with an Iranian agent and carried out various missions under his instruction.

The missions included passing on classified military material obtained during Eliasfov’s military service in an air defense unit. It said the suspects also spray-painted graffiti and hung banners with pro-Iranian messages in various locations across the country, all allegedly in return for financial compensation.

The prosecution is expected to file an indictment against them in the coming days.

In September, an Israeli citizen was indicted for involvement in an Iranian assassination plot against top Israeli leaders, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. One month later, authorities arrested another Israeli who was allegedly involved in an Iranian plot to assassinate an Israeli scientist.

The Shin Bet says Iranian agents are known to use social media and promises of cash to try to enlist Israelis to carry out such missions.

Israel and Iran’s long-running shadow war has burst into the open over the past year, with the two countries directly exchanging fire in April and again in October.