National Oil Corporation reaffirms Libya’s sovereign rights over Eastern Mediterranean Maritine Borders

The National Oil Corporation of Libya has reaffirmed the country’s sovereign rights over natural resources located within its maritime borders within the Eastern Mediterranean Sea.

This comes amid rising regional tensions over the maritime boundaries and offshore energy reserves with neighbouring countries.

In an official statement, the National Oil Corporation (NOC) emphasized its unwavering commitment to implementing exploration programs aimed at protecting the national interests of Libya and fully developing its hydrocarbon resources in the region.

Apparently, the statement from the corporation comes in response to growing diplomatic friction, particularly between Libya and Greece, over the Mediterranean Sea maritime demarcation agreements.

As it happens, Greece has openly rejected Libya’s 2019 maritime deal with Turkey, while pursuing its own overlapping Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs) in partnership with Egypt.

These rival claims have intensified the geopolitical competition over gas-rich zones in the Eastern Mediterranean.

Over the weekend, beyond the harsh exchanges between Athens and Ankara over the Turkey-Libya Memorandum — which the European Union condemned as illegal — negative signals also emerged from Eastern Libya.

The “Prime Minister” of Benghazi, Osama Hamad, expressed support for the memorandum, while Members of Parliament in Tobruk announced plans for a parliamentary vote to ratify it, possibly within the week.

Greece has long struggled to establish a consistent Libya policy — dating back to the Gaddafi era, and especially after his fall, which left Libya a failed state.

This absence of strategy cost Athens dearly in 2019 with the signing of the Turkish and Libyan maritime memorandum, which remains a major obstacle in Greek and Turkish relations.