EU warns Turkey to keep off Mediterranean gas exploration plans
The European Union has urged Turkey to drop plans to drill for oil and gas around Cyprus and the eastern Mediterranean, saying such exploration was “illegal“.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan vowed Thursday that Turkey would start exploring for gas in the eastern Mediterranean “as soon as possible” this year, after signing a maritime deal with Libya.
“Concrete steps towards creating an environment conducive to dialogue in good faith are needed,” EU foreign policy spokesman Peter Stano said in a statement released Saturday.
“The intention by Turkey to launch further exploration and drilling activities in the wider region goes, regrettably, in the opposite direction.” Ankara has angered neighbouring countries in the Mediterranean with an agreement signed with the Tripoli government in November, which claimed extensive areas of the sea for Turkey.
