Representatives Gus Bilirakis (R-FL) and Brad Schneider (D-IL) spearheaded a recent bipartisan letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio, calling for the United States to publicly oppose the Republic of Turkey's (Turkiye) "Blue Homeland" maritime doctrine.
What is the Blue Homeland Doctrine?
The Blue Homeland (Turkish: Mavi Vatan) doctrine seeks to expand Turkey's Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) in the Eastern Mediterranean and Aegean Seas to extend far closer to the Greek mainland and the boundaries of Cyprus, arguing that the Greek islands closest to the Turkish coast are not automatically part of Greece's EEZ.
Ankara seeks to codify this in law, and if it does, current tensions between Turkey, Greece, and Cyprus could flare into a full-blown crisis within the European Union (EU).
The Turkish government intended to vote on the bill last week but delayed it ahead of a planned EU summit in Ankara in July, likely waiting for a more opportune moment to act on the proposal.
Bilirakis's Opposition
In his letter to Secretary Rubio, Rep. Bilirakis wrote, "Turkey's reported consideration of legislation to codify the Blue Homeland doctrine would further inflame regional tensions, challenge internationally recognized maritime norms, and threaten important partnerships that strengthen our collective security."
Rep. Bilirakis pointed out that the Blue Homeland doctrine undermines the 2019 Eastern Mediterranean Security and Energy Partnership Act, which strengthened strategic cooperation among the United States, Greece, Cyprus, and Israel while advancing regional energy security and diversification.
As a result, in addition to urging that the United States' opposition to Turkey's Blue Homeland doctrine be known, the Florida congressman called for continued cooperation with allies and partners to ease the ongoing tensions in the Eastern Mediterranean.
Previous Moves Against Turkey
This is not the first time Bilirakis has sought to keep the Turks on a tight leash, introducing a bill last July to extend the waiver renewal period on the arms embargo on Cyprus, especially as a Turkey-backed breakaway government has started building up a military which the internationally recognized ethnic Greek-held government called "illegal."
Later in August and September, Bilirakis pushed for the White House to deny Turkey's readmission to the Joint Strike Fighter program.
