UNITED NATIONS — Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Thursday called for a global maritime truce after a drone attack sank a Greek container ship off Bulgaria, the latest in a series of strikes on ships in the western Black Sea this month, Reuters reported.
Source: Reuters
Speaking at a high-level debate on maritime security held under Greece's presidency of the UN Security Council, Mitsotakis said commercial vessels must be able to navigate safely and freely even during times of conflict. “Targeted civilian commercial shipping is completely unacceptable. It is yet another reminder for the urgent need for a global maritime truce,” he said, adding: “We cannot allow our seas to become a jungle.”
Source: Reuters
The appeal followed Wednesday's sinking of the Greek-owned, Liberian-flagged container ship Contship Jet, which was hit by maritime drones off Bulgaria. All 18 crew members were rescued, and the attackers have not been identified. Awaaz Punjab reported the sinking earlier this week. Read the earlier report on the Contship Jet sinking
Mitsotakis warned that disruptions to freedom of navigation drive up shipping and insurance costs, and ultimately increase costs for consumers. In a separate interview with Reuters, he said chartering and insurance expenses have “gone through the roof”, called safe Black Sea grain exports an “utmost priority”, and said Greek shipowners would be the first to resume trading in the Black Sea, including from Ukraine, if safe passage were guaranteed.
Source: Reuters
He also called on the European Union to bolster Aspides, its naval mission launched in 2024 to protect shipping in the Red Sea from attacks by Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis, Reuters reported.
Source: Reuters
Turkey–Libya maritime deal called “null and void”
Mitsotakis told Reuters that the maritime boundaries deal approved last week by Libya's eastern parliament with Turkey was “blatantly illegal, null and void” and “completely disregards the geography”. The deal has also drawn condemnation from Egypt, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates. He said no bilateral arrangement could override the international law of the sea, which provides a framework for cooperation and the peaceful settlement of maritime disputes.
Source: Reuters
Greece has awarded a licence to a consortium led by Chevron to look for gas off the island of Crete and has sought a separate agreement with Libya on demarcating their maritime zones. Mitsotakis said there was “no risk that these explorations will be in any way challenged”.
Source: Reuters
What is solid
- Mitsotakis made the maritime-truce call at a UN Security Council debate chaired by Greece on October 29, and repeated it in an interview with Reuters.
- The Contship Jet sank off Bulgaria after a maritime-drone attack; all 18 crew were rescued.
- No binding maritime truce was adopted at the debate, and the Security Council did not rule on the Turkey–Libya deal.
What is only claimed
- Who carried out the drone attack on the Contship Jet has not been identified; Bulgarian military prosecutors have opened an investigation.
- Greece calls the Turkey–Libya maritime deal illegal under the law of the sea; that legal position is Greece's, and the Council did not adopt it as a decision.
What happens next: the truce call is a proposal, not an agreement shipping companies can rely on — no enforcement mechanism or list of participating parties was announced. Bulgaria had already called earlier in October for a moratorium on attacks against civilian shipping.