President Nikos Christodoulides on Monday said he expects for there to be a “European” reaction should Turkey’s parliament pass the planned “maritime jurisdiction law”, which will codify the country’s maritime claims in the Aegean and Mediterranean seas in line with the “Blue Homeland” doctrine, known as the “Mavi Vatan” in Turkish

“It affects Cyprus, it affects Greece, it also other European states, but it also affects the United States, which has interests in this particular region,” Christodoulides said, adding that those interests are “based on international law” and “on the 1982 [United Nations] convention on the law of the sea [Unclos]”.

He said that he had discussed the matter with Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis when he visited Athens last week, and that the issue had also been raised “with European leaders”.

“We are monitoring developments. I hope Turkey will not proceed with any illegal actions. If it proceeds with any actions, the reaction should be European, and it is precisely within this framework that we have already taken preventative steps, together with [Mitsotakis],” he said.

Asked if the bill’s passage may negatively impact discussions on the Cyprus problem, he said that “it is not positive, it is certainly not positive to see such actions, especially at a time when a very important effort is underway on the part of the UN Secretary-General [Antonio Guterres]”.

Turkey’s defence ministry had said last Friday that the bill “will define responsibilities in our maritime jurisdiction areas and address shortcomings in our domestic legal framework”, and that the finishing touches are being put to the bill.

Last Thursday, Turkish public broadcaster TRT had reported that sources from the country’s ruling AK Party had informed it that “under the regulation, the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) and continental shelf boundaries, which constitute Turkey’s maritime borders, will be codified into law” with the bill.

“The draft also addresses the legal status of the islands, islets, and rocks in the Aegean Sea, which occasionally cause tension between Turkey and Greece and are referred to as ‘grey zones’. The description and status of these geographical formations will be included into the ‘Blue Homeland law’,” it said.

It also stressed that the bill will be drafted “in accordance with the principles of international maritime law”.

Greece and Turkey have long disputed their maritime boundaries, with the disagreement stemming from the question of whether islands generate their own EEZ or not.

In line with Unclos’ definition, Greece’s position is that its islands each generate an EEZ, while Turkey’s position is that they do not, and that as such, its own EEZ stretches halfway across the Aegean towards the Greek mainland.

The maritime claims of Turkey and the Republic of Cyprus clash for the same reason, with the Republic of Cyprus placing its own western boundary further west than where Turkey believes it to be.

The bill is expected to be brought before the Turkish parliament in early June, after the Eid al-Adha holiday.