Recent gas discoveries in the waters of the Mediterranean have revived ancient rivalries, putting the spotlight on unsolved disputes over maritime border delimitations. However, the same discoveries may offer new opportunities for cooperation between regional actors. This paper analyzes the strategic geopolitical importance of the Eastern Mediterranean. After an introduction of the latest developments on security and energy issues in the region, the first section presents the long-lasting conflict between Turkey and Greece, with a specific focus on the tensions related to the recognition of EEZ of Kastellorizo island, underlying the technical aspects as well as the political implications, and the projections that this conflict have on the bilateral relations in the region; the second section reviews the legal practice, analyzing how similar cases have been solved before the ICJ, and examining whether similar solutions could be applied to the controversy between Turkey and Greece; finally, the last section will focus on the regional implications for neighboring countries, investigating the role that these actors, along with the EU, NATO and the United States, may cover as mediators.


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