TURKEY threatened on Friday to take “all necessary measures” to protect its interests in the Eastern Mediterranean, the Turkish foreign ministry said, promoting angry responses from Nicosia.

A spokesman for the Turkish foreign ministry Huseyin Muftuoglu, responding to President Nicos Anastasiades’s visit to New York and his meetings with energy giants, said this demonstrated “yet again how the Greek Cypriot administration disregards the inalienable rights on natural resources of the Turkish Cypriot people, the co-owners of the island”.

The Cyprus government has just launched its third licensing round of hydrocarbons exploration and Anastasiades’ meeting with representatives of one of the hydrocarbon companies that took part in the international tender, ExxonMobil, sparked Ankara’s ire.

“This attitude shows that the Greek Cypriot administration is still not able to grasp the win-win-based potential for economic cooperation that can ensure on the island and in the Eastern Mediterranean from a comprehensive settlement, towards which the Turkish Cypriot side and Turkey have been expending intensive efforts,” Muftuoglu said.

The Greek Cypriot side, the spokesman said, refuses to accept the Turkish Cypriots as politically equal partners on the island.

“Turkey expects [the Greek Cypriot side] to refrain from acting as though it were the sole owner of the island’s natural resources and to cease its hydrocarbon-related activities,” Muftuoglu said.

“It will be recalled in this context that in previous years, such activities have led to the failure of efforts aiming towards a comprehensive settlement. We also […] remind once again that Turkey will take all necessary measures to protect its interests in the Eastern Mediterranean, as well as the rights of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.”

Amid reunification talks, Turkish seismic research vessel Barbaros was dispatched to the Cypriot exclusive economic zone in October 2014, prompting Anastasiades to withdraw from the negotiations in protest, returning only after the boat retreated back to Turkey in April 2015.

Reacting to Muftuoglu’s remarks, the Cypriot foreign ministry said the Turkish statement “once more demonstrates Turkey’s disregard for conventional and customary international law”.

“International law provides that a country’s natural wealth belongs to the state and the responsibility for managing it lies with its government for the benefit of all its citizens,” the ministry said.

“Consequently, actions that put into question the sovereign rights of the Republic of Cyprus not only contradict international law, but are also completely groundless.”

It is regrettable that Turkey once more resorts to threats, the ministry added, in order to advance its own interests under the pretext of “concerns” over the rights of the Turkish Cypriots.

Pledging that Cyprus will “resolutely continue its policy in the field of hydrocarbons”, the ministry said Anastasiades has taken a clear position affirming that “Turkish Cypriots will benefit from the exploitation of hydrocarbons in the context of an agreed settlement of the Cyprus problem”.

“In the bicommunal negotiations, it was agreed that natural resources will fall within the competences of the federal government,” it noted.

“To this end, Turkey is called upon to contribute in tangible terms to the resumption of the negotiating process and the achievement of a speedy reunification of Cyprus, through a just and viable solution to the Cyprus problem that will allow all Cypriots to enjoy their rights freely and peacefully.”

In a statement, ruling Disy said the Turkish foreign ministry’s intervention into the Republic of Cyprus’ internal affairs was “rejected and of absolutely no value”.

“No matter how disturbed Turkey is from our natural wealth and our country’s cooperation with global energy players, the reserves found in the Cypriot exclusive economic area belong to the Cypriots,” the party said.

“Regardless of its threats, per its constant practice in every direction, ‘Ankara has no rights to protect in Cypriot waters’.”

Opposition party Diko said “Turkey’s threats once more revealed her real intentions to control Cyprus politically and militarily”, and proven that the “policy of appeasement” adopted by Anastasiades and the leaderships of Disy and Akel has failed.

“Unabashedly, Turkey is trying to illegally intervene in the Republic of Cyprus’ exercising of its sovereign rights, violating every principle of international law and law of the sea, and shattering any hope for a conclusion to the Cyprus problem peace talks,” the party said.

“The provocative Turkish stance must bring Mr Anastasiades and the leaderships of Disy and Akel, who falsely believe that the policy of concessions, generous offerings, and appeasement, will make Turkey negotiate the Cyprus problem seriously, back to reality. This strategy has failed completely.”

What is needed, the party said, is a new policy that will incur a cost to Turkey from non-solution of the Cyprus problem, which will force her negotiate a lasting, viable, and functional solution.

Socialist Edek also blamed the government for failing to address “Turkey’s provocative behaviour”.

“The continuing apathy in the face of repeated Turkish provocations confirms the sense of defeatism and the Cypriot government’s failure to safeguard the country’s interests,” the party said.





