Italian ship under Ankara’s watchful eye

Athens is on standby to avoid unnecessary midsummer tensions as the Turkish Navy monitors the movements of the Italian ship Teliri, which is carrying out submarine fiber-optic cable laying work within the potential Greek exclusive economic zone (EEZ) and continental shelf.

On Tuesday, the ship was moving several dozens of miles southwest of Kastellorizo in the southeastern Aegean, and within the next 24 hours it is expected to sail toward the area demarcated between Greece and Egypt - i.e. south of Rhodes and further west.

The ship was monitored over the past days by corvettes of the Turkish Navy - initially by the Bartin and now by the Bozcaada. From the moment it passed from the Cypriot EEZ and into the area of the potential Greek EEZ, the Hellenic Navy missile ship Grigoropoulos was deployed. It remains to be seen whether the Turkish corvette will leave when the...