Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu said “We have sent our drilling vessels to protect the rights of Turkey and the TRNC and the Greek Cypriots get into a panic”.
Çavuşoğlu answered the questions of the “Anadolu Agency Editor Masası” regarding the agenda. Mentioning the developments in the Eastern Mediterranean, Çavuşoğlu said “Any agreement which excludes Turkey is not valid. We also have a continental shelf in the Eastern Mediterranean. The borders of our continental shelf are clear. We have conveyed this issue to the UN”. Adding that Turkey conducts seismic research and drilling at the areas in which the TRNC have given license to the Turkish Petroleum Corporation, Çavuşoğlu said “Previously we were conducting only seismic research because we had no drilling vessel. Now, our drilling vessel Fatih 1 has started drilling in the West of Cyprus”.
Stressing that the Greek Cypriot Administration has also taken steps backward in respect of the issues which were previously agreed during the negotiations, Çavuşoğlu said “We have informed all sides. For example, we have informed the UK, and sent letters to the Foreign Ministers of the United Nations Security Council Permanent member countries, the EU member countries and the High Representative of the EU Foreign Affairs and Security Policies, Federica Mogherini in which we explained the rights of Turkey and the TRNC. We also invited all of our ambassadors in Ankara and informed them.”
Reminding that Turkey has warned the EU many times, Çavuşoğlu said that Turkey is determined on this issue and will never allow the Greek Cypriot side to arrest their citizens. Turkey has never supported the unilateral steps.
Furthermore, Çavuşoğlu underlined that the only alternative for the natural gas in the region to reach Europe and the world markets is through Turkey.
