Ankara rebuffs Greece’s claim Turkish forces entered its waters

ANKARA (AA) – Türkiye has rebuffed claim made by Greece that a Turkish offshore vessel displayed weapons and obstructed search and rescue operations by entering the Greek area of responsibility and territorial waters in the Aegean Sea.

On Oct. 31, a boat was assigned to carry out search and rescue operations in the south of Samos Island to find eight missing people, the Turkish Coast Guard Command said in a statement on Tuesday.

Turkish forces were dispatched to the location upon notification that a body was detected in the sea by a Saint Kitts and Nevis-flagged commercial ship, Petro Bulk, it added.

The body was taken from the sea at 11.35 p.m. local time and transferred to Kusadasi Port to carry out necessary procedures, it said.

“Contrary to what was claimed by the Greek authorities, the body was taken by the Turkish Coast Guard Boat in the Turkish search and rescue region and international waters declared to the International Maritime Organization (IMO) under the 1979 Hamburg International Convention on Maritime Search and Rescue,” it added.

Türkiye has been a key transit point for asylum seekers aiming to cross into Europe to start new lives, especially those fleeing war and persecution.

Human rights groups and media outlets have frequently reported on illegal pushbacks and human rights breaches by Greek authorities.

Ankara and global rights groups have repeatedly condemned Greece’s illegal practice of pushing back asylum seekers, saying it violates humanitarian values and international law by endangering the lives of vulnerable migrants, including women and children.