1.3 Maritime areas between conflict, cooperation

Primary geographical features generating overlapping EEZ entitlements

Islands, reefs, and continental shelves.

Eastern Mediterranean maritime dispute

A standoff between Turkey and Greece over overlapping Exclusive Economic Zone ($\text{EEZ}$) claims and hydrocarbon exploration rights surrounding Aegean islands and Cyprus.

Cartographic power

The strategic use of official place-naming and map-making by states to assert sovereignty and contest established geopolitical spaces.

Maritime piracy

The illegal boarding, hijacking, or attacking of vessels at sea, rooted in state fragility, poverty, and ungoverned marine spaces.

Horn of Africa and Gulf of Aden piracy crisis ($2008\text{--}2012$)

A period of maritime insecurity involving Somali pirates hijacking vessels for ransom, inflicting an estimated annual global economic cost of $\$7\text{ billion}$ before suppression by multinational patrols.

Primary operational objective of Gulf of Guinea piracy

The theft of vessel cargo and equipment rather than seizing ships and crews for ransom payments.

Red Sea shipping crisis ($2023\text{--}\text{present}$)

Maritime disruption caused by Yemen's Houthi rebels launching missile and drone strikes on commercial traffic, diverting transits away from the Suez Canal around the Cape of Good Hope and adding $10\text{--}14\text{ days}$ to Europe-Asia voyages.

Operation Prosperity Guardian

A United States-led multinational naval coalition established to safeguard commercial vessels against attacks along the Red Sea transit corridor.

United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS)

The international legal regime establishing rules for territorial waters, Exclusive Economic Zones ($\text{EEZ}$), and peaceful ocean governance.