Costas Mavrides of Socialists and Democrats (S&D) today urged Brussels to consider a naval mission modelled on existing EU operations, amid renewed tensions with Turkey.
A Cypriot MEP has called on the European Union to consider deploying a maritime security operation in the Eastern Mediterranean, arguing that the bloc should be prepared to defend international maritime law and its own legal order in the region.
Speaking before the European Parliament’s Committee on Security and Defence (SEDE), Costas Mavrides (DIKO–S&D) proposed establishing an EU-led operation modelled on existing naval missions, including Operation Aspides and Operation Irini.
His intervention comes against the backdrop of heightened tensions in the Eastern Mediterranean, where maritime security, competing jurisdictional claims and the interpretation of international law remain sensitive issues.
“In recent days, we have witnessed a highly provocative and unilateral action by Turkey in the Eastern Mediterranean,” Mavrides told MEPs, making the case for a more visible European presence in the region.
He asked whether the EU could establish an operation aimed at ensuring maritime security and enforcing international law, specifically under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
The proposal draws on precedents already established by the EU. Operation Aspides, launched in February 2024 in response to attacks on commercial shipping in the Red Sea, is tasked with protecting freedom of navigation. Operation Irini, meanwhile, operates in the Mediterranean, primarily monitoring compliance with the UN arms embargo on Libya and contributing to maritime security.
Both illustrate the EU’s capacity to deploy naval assets under its Common Security and Defence Policy, although any new mission in the Eastern Mediterranean would require a separate political decision and an agreed mandate.
Beyond the immediate maritime security proposal, Mavrides also called for greater practical substance to be given to the EU’s mutual assistance clause, Article 42(7) of the Treaty on European Union. The provision obliges EU member states to provide aid and assistance to a fellow member state that is the victim of armed aggression on its territory.
However, Mavrides acknowledged that making the clause operational would take time, particularly given differences among member states over security priorities.
“Article 42(7) must be at the heart of this effort, and we must make it practically applicable,” he said.
Returning to his proposal for the Eastern Mediterranean, Mavrides asked his colleagues to consider whether the EU should extend its maritime security engagement to the region.
“Can we consider the possibility of establishing an operation to safeguard maritime security and the Law of the Sea in the Eastern Mediterranean?” he asked.
For Cyprus, whose strategic position places it at the crossroads of the Eastern Mediterranean, the debate over Europe’s role in regional maritime security carries particular significance.
Mavrides’ proposal now puts the question of a dedicated EU maritime presence in the region before the Parliament’s defence and security debate.
(Sources: European External Action Service, European Parliament, United Nations)
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