The European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) has cancelled Turkey’s application for the “Turkaegean” trademark, handing Greece a legal triumph.
The judgment, made on January 10, 2025, came in response to concerns from Greece’s Ministry of Development and the Industrial Property Organization (OBI).
Greek media reported on the ruling as representing an important victory for Athens in an ongoing geopolitical dispute.
Turkey’s Tourism Promotion and Development Agency originally applied in 2021, seeking to establish the term as part of its tourism branding efforts. Greece challenged the move in February 2023, arguing that the trademark infringed on its rights and sought to appropriate a culturally significant region.
The Trade Mark Turkaegean that the turkish tourism organisation illegally registered in 2021 is now CANCELLED by the European Union Intellectual Property Office with its decision C58927, 10/01/25
A similar cancellation case is pending in the USA pic.twitter.com/XGwTqOz8RN
— Leonidas ToEat ♎☘🇬🇷🇬🇧 (@AnAthenianToLDN) January 10, 2025
Under European Union (EU) regulations, Turkey now has two months to appeal the decision.
Although both countries are NATO allies, Greece and Turkey have long been at odds over Cyprus, maritime borders and overlapping claims to the continental shelf, among other issues. The Aegean Sea, which is at the center of these disputes, plays a crucial role in the tourism-driven economies of both countries.
The slogan “Turkaegean” was first registered by the EUIPO in December 2021 and became controversial in 2022 when Turkey launched its tourism campaign “Turkaegean: Coast of Happiness.” Greek officials strongly opposed the slogan as they saw it as an expression of Turkey’s wider geopolitical ambitions.
In response to the cancelation by the EUIPO, Greek Development Minister Takis Theodorikakos said, “We are asserting our rights with full force and through all legal means.”
The Turkish authorities have two months to appeal EUIPO’s decision and four months to provide detailed reasons for their appeal.
