A look back at the arrest of the Roseline A. Turkish bad faith found fault with
(B2) We have additional details on the 'timing' of the boarding of a Turkish container ship by a German frigate within the framework of the European operation to monitor the arms embargo (EUNAVFOR Med Irini) . It was on November 22, off the coast of Libya
In missives addressed to Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu on January 5, EU High Representative Josep Borrell dotted the 'i's after the aborted inspection (read: Turco-Germanic mayhem in the eastern Mediterranean. Ankara opposes the control of one of its ships). He comes to respond to a letter from Ankara sent in December, complaining about the European attitude to the United Nations Security Council.
To be official, the words chosen by the European are nonetheless filled with a certain irony, in particular on the delay in lighting up Turkey in this affair, its bad faith which seems patent in the way of mounting highlights the subject or its willingness to respect the international arms embargo.
Four points are thus clarified.
1° The widely respected four-hour custom
The command of Operation Irini sought the consent of the flag state and gave the Turkish Foreign Ministry a " four hours' notice, extended by one hour, to allow authorities time to respond to the request for consent ". A delay, " in line with established international practice in the maritime field ". The flag State has not officially refused ". The IRINI operation boarding team (the visiting team of the German frigate Hamburg) proceeded to inspect the vessel.
2° 13 hours to react!
« It is not until 21:23 p.m. That is more than 13 hours after the official request for consent was sent to the flag State and 6 hours after the start of the inspection which the Turkish ministry has made it known that it does not grant permission.
3° Compliance with NATO procedures
The boarding party acted with the " greater professionalism ", in " full compliance with North Atlantic Treaty Organization procedures and standards (NB: a way of returning the 'ball' to Turkey and questioning it on its membership of the Atlantic Alliance). He is " false » to affirm that she did « excessive use of force against crew members ". On the extent of the search, it is up to the commander of the operation to decide, " depending on various elements, including the documents presented by the captain of the vessel, the extent of the search necessary to assess the legality of a shipment ».
4° Impartiality attested by two elements
The Irini operation remains impartial ". It monitors violations of the embargo " committed by both parties to the Libyan conflict ". Witness, on the one hand, reports submitted to the United Nations Group of Experts on Libya » ; on the other hand, the records of inspections conducted and violations detected ". NB: each inspection or even friendly visit being recorded, minute by minute, by both the head of the force and the captain leading the inspection.
It's up to Turkey to cooperate if it wants to
The head of European diplomacy ends his letter by extending an invitation to Ankara. " The European Union stands ready to cooperate with Turkey ", on the respect of the resolutions of the Security Council, whether for " arms embargo on Libya " or " security in the central Mediterranean ».
(Nicolas Gros-Verheyde)
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