Another incident involving Greek and Turkish coast guard vessels was reported on Wednesday off the large eastern Aegean island of Hios (Chios), with Athens reporting that a Turkish patrol boat raced to the scene of an ongoing rescue operation within Greek territorial waters.
According to reports, a dinghy carrying up to 40 third country nationals had sailed into Greek territorial waters under the watchful eye of the Turkish vessel, whose crew did not attempt to block its passage from Turkish territory towards the island.
However, when the migrant smuggling inflatable stopped in Greek waters and issued a mayday, the Turkish vessel sped to the scene.
One of official Ankara’s long-standing arguments against adhering to, let alone signing and ratifying the UN International Law of the Sea, is that its forces can carry out search and rescue missions in international waters, regardless of whether those sea regions are located west of Greek isles and terrtiorial waters, or with Greek territory in closer proximity to whatever incident.
