“Greece is using the entire legal and substantive arsenal it has built up in recent years and is now proceeding with seismic surveys for the discovery of hydrocarbons in the areas southwest of Crete and the Peloponnese”, emphasized Alternate Minister of Foreign Affairs, Miltiadis Varvitsiotis, speaking on SKAI TV’s morning show “Simera” and to journalists, Dimitris Oikonomou, Akis Pavlopoulos, and Dora Koutrokoi, pointing to the extension of the territorial waters to 12 nautical miles in the Ionian Sea, the agreement on the delimitation of the EEZ with Italy and the “distribution of blocks” in the region.
Referring to the Prime Minister’s announcement the day before, the Alternate Minister stated that we are demonstrating how things should be done in accordance with the rules of International Law and the exercise of national sovereignty. When asked about the extension of the territorial waters to 12 nautical miles, he said that this is our inalienable right and that it must be exercised at a time and in a manner that safeguards our national interests.
When asked about the wiretapping case, Mr. Varvitsiotis said that justice must be done to reveal who was conducting the monitoring, who had an interest, and who was using this illegal and malicious software, adding that only the judicial authorities can do this and that the government is neither an investigator nor a prosecutor.