Cyprus on Sunday insisted Turkey had breached "international law" after Ankara's warships blocked an Italian drilling ship on course to explore for gas in the island's politically sensitive waters.

Italy's energy giant ENI told the Cyprus News Agency its vessel was ordered to stop by Turkish ships Friday over "military activities in the destination area" as it sailed to begin explorations in block 3 of Cyprus's exclusive economic zone.

Turkey and the Greek Cypriot-majority republic have sparred over resources in the eastern Mediterranean, with Ankara pushing the claim of the unrecognised statelet it backs on the north of the divided island.

"We are keeping calm in order to avoid any crisis and taking all diplomatic steps necessary so that finally the Republic of Cyprus' sovereign rights can be respected," President Nicos Anastasiades told reporters Sunday.

"We are handling the situation by trying to avoid anything that could worsen the situation without ignoring the fact that Turkey's actions are in breach of international law," he added.

However, Turkey's foreign ministry lashed out at Cyprus over the "unilateral hydrocarbon-related activities" by the European Union's most easterly member.

"It does so in disregard of the inalienable rights on natural resources of the Turkish Cypriot people, who are the co-owners of the Island," a statement said.

"This unconstructive Greek Cypriot attitude also constitutes a major obstacle to the settlement of the Cyprus issue."

The island has been divided since 1974 when Turkish troops invaded and occupied its northern third in response to a coup sponsored by the military junta then ruling Greece.

Cyprus announced on Thursday that exploratory drilling by Italy's ENI and France's Total had found extensive gas reserves elsewhere off the island in a major breakthrough in its hunt for resources.

Cyprus has signed deals with a range of firms for exploratory drilling, with US giant ExxonMobil also planning two drills in the second half of 2018.

The dispute over resources in the Mediterranean is another complicating factor in efforts to reunify the island after negotiations on the 44-year feud collapsed in acrimony last year.

Turkey and Cyprus are not the only countries at odds over resources in the eastern Mediterranean, with Israel and Lebanon also feuding over competing claims. </s> NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) — Turkish warships continue to impede a rig from reaching a location off Cyprus where Italian energy company Eni is scheduled to drill for gas, the Cypriot government said Monday.

Spokesman Nicos Christodoulides told state broadcaster RIK that the rig remains anchored about 30 miles (50 kilometers) from the drilling target off the island’s southeastern coast.

He said Cyprus and Eni are focused on ensuring that drilling goes ahead as planned.

Christodoulides said Turkish warships prevented other merchant vessels from approaching the area, citing military maneuvers. He said a Turkish notice binding the area for such maneuvers expires Feb. 22. Cyprus says the notice violates international law and is legally invalid.

Cyprus was divided into a Greek Cypriot south, where the internationally recognized government is seated, and a Turkish Cypriot north in 1974, when Turkey invaded in the wake of a coup mounted by supporters of union with Greece. A Turkish Cypriot declaration of independence is only recognized by Turkey which maintains mover 35,000 troops in the north.

Turkey opposes what it says is a “unilateral” search for resources by the Cypriot government because it disregards the rights of breakaway Turkish Cypriots to the island’s natural resources.

The Cypriot government says it is its sovereign right to drill for gas and that any income from the hydrocarbons will be shared equitably after the island is reunified.

Greece’s foreign ministry condemned what it said was Turkey’s disregard for international law and the “blatant violation” of Cyprus’ sovereign rights. In a statement Monday, the ministry called on Turkey to stop any further unlawful actions and to comply with its international legal obligations.

It also said that Turkey’s “provocative” behavior isn’t in line with that of a candidate for European Union membership.

The EU cautioned Turkey to respect the territory of its member states and to avoid ratcheting up tensions.

“Turkey needs to commit unequivocally to good neighborly relations and avoid any kind of source of friction, threat or action directed against a member state” European Commission spokeswoman Mina Andreeva said. “Moreover, the EU also stresses the need to respect the sovereignty of member states over their territorial sea and air space.”

Turkey has in the past routinely issued notices binding areas south of Cyprus for naval drills in response to the island nation’s hydrocarbons search. But it’s the first time that it has taken such a step to prevent drilling.

Last week, Cyprus said that Eni had discovered a potentially sizeable gas deposit at another target southwest of the island.

Lorne Cooke in Brussels contributed to this report. </s> NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) - Turkish warships continue to impede a rig from reaching a location off Cyprus where Italian energy company Eni is scheduled to drill for gas, the Cypriot government said Monday.

Spokesman Nicos Christodoulides told state broadcaster RIK that the rig remains anchored about 30 miles (50 kilometers) from the drilling target off the island's southeastern coast.

He said Cyprus and Eni are focused on ensuring that drilling goes ahead as planned.

In this photo taken on Sunday, Oct. 15, 2017 children play on a beach with a drilling platform seen in the background, on the outskirts of Larnaca port, in the eastern Mediterranean island of Cyprus. Turkish warships on maneuvers in the Mediterranean Sea have blocked a rig belonging to the Italian energy firm ENI from reaching an area off Cyprus to start searching for gas, officials said Saturday, Feb. 10, 2018. Cyprus' Foreign Minister Ioannis Kasoulides told state broadcaster RIK that the rig has halted its journey heading south of Cyprus and was waiting for directions from ENI. He says Cypriot authorities are in contact with the company and the Italian government. (AP Photo/Petros Karadjias)

Christodoulides said Turkish warships prevented other merchant vessels from approaching the area, citing military maneuvers. He said a Turkish notice binding the area for such maneuvers expires Feb. 22. Cyprus says the notice violates international law and is legally invalid.

Cyprus was divided into a Greek Cypriot south, where the internationally recognized government is seated, and a Turkish Cypriot north in 1974, when Turkey invaded in the wake of a coup mounted by supporters of union with Greece. A Turkish Cypriot declaration of independence is only recognized by Turkey which maintains mover 35,000 troops in the north.

Turkey opposes what it says is a "unilateral" search for resources by the Cypriot government because it disregards the rights of breakaway Turkish Cypriots to the island's natural resources.

The Cypriot government says it is its sovereign right to drill for gas and that any income from the hydrocarbons will be shared equitably after the island is reunified.

Greece's foreign ministry condemned what it said was Turkey's disregard for international law and the "blatant violation" of Cyprus' sovereign rights. In a statement Monday, the ministry called on Turkey to stop any further unlawful actions and to comply with its international legal obligations.

It also said that Turkey's "provocative" behavior isn't in line with that of a candidate for European Union membership.

Turkey has in the past routinely issued notices binding areas south of Cyprus for naval drills in response to the island nation's hydrocarbons search.

Last week, Cyprus said that Eni had discovered a potentially sizeable gas deposit at another target southwest of the island. </s> NICOSIA, Cyprus — Turkish warships continue to impede a rig from reaching a location off Cyprus where Italian energy company Eni is scheduled to drill for gas, the Cypriot government said Monday.

Spokesman Nicos Christodoulides told state broadcaster RIK that the rig remains anchored about 30 miles (50 kilometres) from the drilling target off the island’s southeastern coast.

He said Cyprus and Eni are focused on ensuring that drilling goes ahead as planned.

Christodoulides said Turkish warships prevented other merchant vessels from approaching the area, citing military manoeuvrs. He said a Turkish notice binding the area for such manoeuvrs expires Feb. 22. Cyprus says the notice violates international law and is legally invalid.

Cyprus was divided into a Greek Cypriot south, where the internationally recognized government is seated, and a Turkish Cypriot north in 1974, when Turkey invaded in the wake of a coup mounted by supporters of union with Greece. A Turkish Cypriot declaration of independence is only recognized by Turkey which maintains mover 35,000 troops in the north.

Turkey opposes what it says is a “unilateral” search for resources by the Cypriot government because it disregards the rights of breakaway Turkish Cypriots to the island’s natural resources.

The Cypriot government says it is its sovereign right to drill for gas and that any income from the hydrocarbons will be shared equitably after the island is reunified.

Greece’s foreign ministry condemned what it said was Turkey’s disregard for international law and the “blatant violation” of Cyprus’ sovereign rights. In a statement Monday, the ministry called on Turkey to stop any further unlawful actions and to comply with its international legal obligations.

It also said that Turkey’s “provocative” behaviour isn’t in line with that of a candidate for European Union membership.

Turkey has in the past routinely issued notices binding areas south of Cyprus for naval drills in response to the island nation’s hydrocarbons search.

Last week, Cyprus said that Eni had discovered a potentially sizeable gas deposit at another target southwest of the island. </s> NICOSIA – Stepping up aggression and hinting at military action, Turkey sent warships to block an Italian company drillship from reaching waters off Cyprus licensed for an energy hunt, sending the Cypriot and Italian governments to plan a response.

The legitimate Cypriot government, which Turkey refuses to recognize as it continues to occupy the northern third almost 44 years after an unlawful invasion, said it was in quick contact with Italy after the Saipem 12000 drillship of energy giant ENI was reportedly forced to halt its course to Block 3 of the island’s Exclusive Economic zone (EEZ) by Turkish warships.

Turkey, which doesn’t recognize laws of the seas, has it owns a large of Cyprus’ EEZ and has sent its own energy research vessels into Cypriot waters with no action from the United Nations or the European Union it wants to join, and of which Cyprus is a member.

Turkey has repeatedly warned Cyprus not to license international companies to drill in the waters where recent reports indicate there could be lucrative discoveries Turkey also said it wants a share of even though the sources would be in waters outside Turkey’s jurisdiction.

Speaking to state broadcaster CYC, Foreign Minister Ioannis Kasoulides said the Turkish vessels forced the captain to maneuver out of their way, while other reports said the Turkish ships ordered the drillship to change course.

“The foreign ministries of Italy and Cyprus are in constant contact,” Kasoulides said.

 The ship stopped its course to its intended destination on Friday when it was at a distance of 15 nautical miles – 70 kilometers off southeast coast of Cyprus.

Later, the Turkish Foreign Ministry said any conflict that results, with no reports Italy would send its own warships to protect the ENI vessel or that the Cypriot Navy or Coast Guard would take action, would be the fault of “the Greek Cypriot administration continuing its unilateral hydrocarbon-related activities in the Eastern Mediterranean.”

“Despite all our warnings, the Greek Cypriot administration continues its unilateral hydrocarbon-related activities in the Eastern Mediterranean. It does so in disregard of the inalienable rights on natural resources of the Turkish Cypriot people, who are the co-owners of the island,” the ministry said in a statement.

“The sole responsibility for any situation that could arise as a consequence falls on the Greek Cypriot side, which, instead of expending efforts towards a just and lasting comprehensive settlement in Cyprus, persists in acting as though it were the sole owner of the island and in continuing its unilateral hydrocarbon-related activities,” the statement added.

The dispute over the waters clouded the collapsed unity negotiations that fell apart at the Swiss resort of Crans-Montana in July, 2016 where Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades walked away after Turkey said it would never remove an army it keeps in the occupied territory only it recognizes and that it wanted the right to militarily intervene.

“This attitude of the Greek Cypriot side, which does not shy away from irresponsibly jeopardizing the security and stability of the Eastern Mediterranean region, is actually the fundamental reason behind the failure of the Cyprus settlement negotiations to produce an outcome for the past half-century,” the Turkish Foreign Ministry said.

“As long as the Greek Cypriot administration continues its unilateral hydrocarbon-related activities, it will remain evident just how far removed the Greek Cypriot side is from perceiving the Turkish Cypriots as their equal partners,” it said. </s> A showdown over natural gas and oil deposits in the seas off Cyprus is set to intensify, with Turkey announcing it is to send a drilling ship to the region days after the US energy company ExxonMobil dispatched its own survey vessels to the area.

As tensions flare over the potential spoils off the coast of the divided island, the Turkish president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, has declared he will not tolerate the prospect of reserves being exploited by Greek Cypriots at a time when his country is engaged in conflicts elsewhere, not least against Kurdish fighters in northern Syria.



Last month, Turkish warships were ordered to prevent drilling operations by ENI, an Italian energy company commissioned by Cyprus’s government, in what was seen as a brazen act of brinkmanship.

Turkey argues the self-proclaimed Turkish republic of Northern Cyprus should also be allowed to exploit the region, although others claim that areas designated for drilling fall under Ankara’s maritime jurisdiction or that of the Turkish Cypriots.

“Hopefully it has been instructive for some who saw an opportunity to act unilaterally when Turkey is engaged in anti-terrorism operations elsewhere,” Erdoğan said on Tuesday, adding that Ankara would be deploying its own newly acquired drillship to the waters off Cyprus imminently.

The sabre-rattling is causing growing concern. Optimism had mounted over the region’s potential as a gas-producing hub after geological surveys pointed to vast reserves around Cyprus. If unlocked, the resources could reshape energy geopolitics, transforming the region economically and lessening Europe’s – and Turkey’s – dependence on Russia for gas.

“Our approach is to keep calm and go on,” said a Cypriot government spokesman, Prodromos Prodromou. “We cannot accept Turkey interfering and creating problems in what, as underlined by the EU, is a sovereign right to exploit our natural wealth.”

As ExxonMobil’s two ships began work, Wess Mitchell, the US state department official in charge of American policy in Europe, visited Nicosia for talks.

But euphoria over an energy bonanza has run up against old enmities and the failure to reunite the island – divided since 1974 when Turkey invaded in response to a coup aimed at creating a union with Greece.

“We are heading for a full-blown crisis in the eastern Mediterranean,” said Hubert Faustmann, professor of political science at the University of Nicosia. “And that is because Turkey is determined not to allow exploitation of any resources without its consent and participation of Turkish Cypriots.” </s> Chief of General Staff Gen. Hulusi Akar said on Tuesday that Turkey has taken all measures in the Aegean and Mediterranean Sea to avoid provocations and a fait accompli.

Akar said that Turkey wants to solve the existing problems in the Aegean Sea within the framework of international law and good neighborly relations, and that all efforts are being exerted with a good will. Akar added: "That being said, a fait accompli will not be allowed in the Aegean and Eastern Mediterranean. All necessary measures are being taken in a decisive manner."

Fragile ties between Turkey and Greece have fallen to new lows following the Greek courts' repeated refusal to extradite eight alleged putschist ex-Turkish soldiers in the wake of the 2016 defeated coup and Turkey's detentio

n last month of two Greek soldiers.

The first quarter of 2018 has been particularly tense. Apart from the soldiers issue, the Greek Cypriots' unilateral hydrocarbon search activities is a matter of grave concern to Turkey. Greek Cyprus has been trying to exclude Turkish Cyprus and Turkey, which has been conducting seismic surveys in the area and exercising its legal rights in accordance with international maritime law.

The issue has reignited old tensions in the Eastern Mediterranean. In February, the Cypriot administration commissioned Italian energy company ENI, which declared the discovery of a potentially sizable gas field off the southwestern coast close to Egypt's Zohr deposit, which is the largest-ever discovered in the Mediterranean. However, Turkey immediately deployed warships to the region and prevented the Italian energy firm from continuing its operations in the region. As a result, ENI's drilling vessel left the area. The disregard for Turkish Cyprus's rights in the region did not stop with the ENI vessel. Following the Turkish Navy's blockade of ENI, early in March, vessels from U.S. oil giant ExxonMobil and state-owned Qatar Petroleum consortium were reported to have arrived in the Eastern Mediterranean to conduct offshore drilling activities.

The island of Cyprus has been divided since 1974 into a predominantly Greek south, wh

ich is an EU member, and a Turkish north whose sovereignty is only recognized by Ankara. </s> NICOSIA, Cyprus -- Turkey faced criticism Monday after its warships continued to impede a rig from reaching a location off Cyprus where Italian energy company Eni is scheduled to drill for gas.

Cyprus government spokesman Nicos Christodoulides told state broadcaster RIK that the rig remains anchored about 30 miles (50 kilometres) from the drilling target off the island nation's southeastern coast.

He said both the government and Eni are focused on ensuring that drilling goes ahead as planned.

The Turkish warships also prevented other merchant vessels from approaching the area, citing ongoing military manoeuvrs, Christodoulides said. Cyprus says a Turkish notice blocking off the area for military activity violates international law and is legally invalid.

In 1974, Cyprus was divided into a Greek Cypriot south, where the internationally recognized government is seated, and a Turkish Cypriot north that only Turkey recognizes and where over 35,000 Turkish troops are stationed.

Turkey opposes the oil drilling, saying it disregards the rights of breakaway Turkish Cypriots to the island's natural resources.

The Cypriot government says it has a sovereign right to drill for gas and that if the search is successful, any income would be shared equitably if the island is reunified.

Greece's foreign ministry condemned what it said was Turkey's disregard for international law and the "blatant violation" of Cyprus' sovereign rights.

It also said that Turkey's "provocative" behaviour wasn't appropriate for a country that has worked to join the European Union membership.

The EU cautioned Turkey to respect the territory of its member states and to avoid ratcheting up tensions. Cyprus joined the EU in 2004, but only the southern part enjoys full membership benefits.

"Turkey needs to commit unequivocally to good neighbourly relations and avoid any kind of source of friction, threat or action directed against a member state" European Commission spokeswoman Mina Andreeva said.

EU Council President Donald Tusk echoed Andreeva. In a post on his official Twitter account, Tusk said he spoke to Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades and called on Turkey to "avoid threats or actions" against EU members and to commit to "peaceful dispute settlement."

Turkey has in the past routinely issued notices binding areas south of Cyprus for naval drills in response to the island nation's hydrocarbons search. But it's the first time that it has taken such a step to prevent drilling.

Last week, Cyprus said Eni had discovered a potentially sizeable gas deposit at another target southwest of the island.

Lorne Cooke in Brussels contributed to this report. </s> For the last month and a half, tensions in the Eastern Mediterranean have escalated due to unilateral moves from Greek Cyprus, which has been commissioning Western energy companies to explore hydrocarbon resources in the Eastern Mediterranean in an area it declared its exclusive economic zone (EEZ). However, Ankara's reactions and measures in the area have prevented these moves since it consider them to be a violation of the sovereign rights of Turkish Cyprus. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan reiterated Turkey's determination to continue protecting its and Turkish Cyprus's rights to natural resources in the region at a ceremony in Ankara Tuesday.

Greek Cyprus has been trying to exclude Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) and Turkey, which has been conducting seismic surveys in the area and exercising its legal rights in accordance with international maritime law. The government in the south of the island last month commissioned Italian energy company ENI, which declared the discovery of a potentially sizable gas field off the southwestern coast close to Egypt's Zohr deposit, which is the largest-ever discovered in the Mediterranean. However, Turkey immediately deployed warships to the region and prevented the Italian energy firm from continuing its operations in the region. As a result, ENI's drilling vessel left the area.

The disregard for Turkish Cyprus's rights in the region did not stop with the ENI vessel. Following the Turkish Navy's blockade of ENI, early in March, vessels from U.S. oil giant ExxonMobil and state-owned Qatar Petroleum consortium were reported to have arrived in the Eastern Mediterranean to conduct offshore drilling activities.

Speaking during an inauguration ceremony to launch natural gas services for 101 districts at the Presidential Palace complex in Ankara, Erdoğan said that Turkey's recent stance regarding offshore drilling activities off Cyprus "had hopefully been instructive for some who saw an opportunity to start unilateral moves in the region when Turkey is engaged in anti-terrorism operations elsewhere."

All steps in the waters surrounding Cyprus should be taken through the participation of both Turkish and Greek parties, including investments and the share of discovered resources, Erdoğan said.

"Turkish and Greek Cyprus should form a joint committee for drilling activities and both sides should get their fair share of the island's natural resources based on their populations," the president said. He further reiterated Turkey's resolution to protect its and Turkish Cyprus's rights in the Eastern Mediterranean, especially in terms of hydrocarbons.

he also announced that Turkey's first drilling vessel, which has the most cutting-edge technology in its field of operation with a width of 36 meters and a weight of 51 gross tons, will soon depart to start drilling operations in the Eastern Mediterranean.

The island of Cyprus has been divided since 1974, when a Greek Cypriot coup took place after decades of violence against the island's Turkish community and Ankara's intervention as a guarantor power. It has seen an on-and-off peace process in recent years, including the latest initiative in Switzerland under the auspices of guarantor countries Turkey, Greece and the U.K. that collapsed in 2017.

In order to decrease its dependency on external resources and to meet rising energy demand as a result of steady economic growth, Turkey has been carrying out energy investments and projects and diversifying its resources. Over the past 15 years, energy investments have reached TL 172 billion ($43.8 billion) and public investments totaled TL 41.3 billion. Investments in natural gas distribution was TL 11.2 billion.

Erdoğan, Putin to attend groundbreaking ceremony of Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant

Erdoğan said that Turkey aims to reduce its energy dependency, and the construction of the Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant, the country's first, will begin this year.

"President [Vladimir] Putin and I will jointly participate in the groundbreaking ceremony," Erdoğan said, explaining that they also spoke about it during a phone call to congratulate Putin's on his re-election in Russia on Monday.

Erdoğan and Putin are expected to meet in Turkey in the first week of April. The two leaders will chair the seventh meeting of the Turkish-Russian High-Level Cooperation Council.

Later, the two presidents will reportedly lay the foundation for the Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant, which will cost an estimated $20 billion.

The first unit of the Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant, which will have four reactors, will be launched in 2023, while the other units will be commissioned one by one in the following years. Accordingly, the plant will reach full capacity in 2026.

With four reactors, each with an installed capacity of 200 megawatts, the plant will generate an average of 35 billion kilowatt hours of electricity annually when it reaches 4,800 megawatts.

Another nuclear power plant project is currently underway in Turkey's Black Sea province of Sinop, and the project is run by a French-Japanese consortium. The Sinop nuclear power plant will have a 4,480-megawatt capacity.

Turkey's energy imports amount to roughly $55 billion annually and its energy demand is among the fastest-growing in Europe. Ankara aims for at least 10 percent of its power generation to come from nuclear energy in less than a decade to cut dependency on natural gas.
Turkey announces it is to send a drilling boat to disputed waters claimed by both Cyprus and Northern Cyprus.