Turkish Navy declared a new NAVTEX in the Aegean Sea, saying that the island of Chios has been militarized by Greece in violation of the 1923 Treaty of Lausanne.
Turkey and Greece, NATO allies, are at odds over overlapping claims for hydrocarbon resources as well as the status of islands in the region.
Tension between two countries escalated when Turkey declared a similar Navtex last month. But it was German Chancellor Angela Merkel who contributed to diffusing tensions.
However, Turkey’s President Tayyip Erdogan announced later that Turkey would resume energy exploration work in the region as Greece had not kept its promises on the issue.
NAVTEX, sometimes styled Navtex or NavTex, is an international automated medium frequency direct-printing service for delivery of navigational and meteorological warnings and forecasts, as well as urgent maritime safety information to ships.
NAVTEX allows ships to inform other vessels about their presence in an area, as well as other information.
NAVTEX can also serve as a warning to other vessels to steer clear of an area due to the sensitivity of the work being carried out and a signal of a country's sovereign exploration rights. (ILKHA)