Whose Islands? The Turkish – Greek dispute in the Aegean Sea : master's thesis

Čizmić, Ada (author), Dederer, Hans-Georg (mentor)

For decades, the ongoing Aegean Sea dispute has hindered relations between Turkey and Greece, occasionally bringing the two countries to the brink of war. The 1995 crisis, which included the grounding of the Turkish ship on the Kardak/Imia rocks, introduced a new dimension to the dispute, after which Turkey began to claim so-called “gray zones,” i.e., undetermined sovereignty over many insular features in the Aegean Sea. The existing literature on the Aegean dispute focuses primarily on maritime delimitation, often overlooking the Turkish claim. While the dispute undoubtedly involves delimitation issues, resolving the sovereignty of insular features is crucial to establishing accurate maritime boundaries for all maritime zones, as many insular formations serve as baselines. It is therefore clear that the resolution of the “gray zone” issues is of paramount importance for the effective resolution of all other related issues. Therefore, this Master's thesis analyzes the “gray zones” lex lata, with the research questions asking to what extent the Turkish claim is valid. Analyzing the arguments of both states, it is evident that the concept of “gray zones” is largely based on different treaty interpretations. Therefore, guided by the rules and methods set forth in Articles 31 and 32 of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties of 1969, the legal instruments governing the legal status of the Aegean Sea are analyzed. The analysis also includes the case law.

• Language: English
• Keywords: Aegean Sea dispute, islands, rocks, grey zones, Kardak/ Imia, Gavdos, Gavdopula
• Work type: Master's thesis/paper
• Typology: 2.09 - Master's Thesis
• Organization: FDV - Faculty of Social Sciences
• Place of publishing: Ljubljana
• Publisher: A. Čizmić
• Year: 2025
• Number of pages: 1 spletni vir (1 datoteka PDF (107 str.))
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-180933
• UDC: 341.221(560:495)(043.2)
• COBISS.SI-ID: 273101571
• Publication date in RUL: 20.03.2026

Secondary language

• Language: Slovenian
• Title: Čigavi otoki? Turško-grški spor v Egejskem morju : magistrsko delo
• Keywords: spor v Egejskem morju, otoki, čeri, sive cone, Kardak/Imia, Gavdos, Gavdopula