New gas drilling bid ‘severe escalation’

NICOSIA: Cyprus yesterday lashed out at Turkey’s new attempt to drill for gas in waters where European energy companies are already licensed to conduct a search, calling it a “severe escalation” and vowing to fight the move.

In a strongly-worded statement, the Cypriot government denounced the arrival of the Turkish drillship Yavuz in an area licensed to France’s Total and Italy’s Eni as “utterly provocative and aggressive behaviour” in defiance of calls to respect the east Mediterranean island nation’s sovereign rights.

It said the Turkish government is putting regional stability and security at risk by choosing to “irreversibly depart from international legality”, adding it would not yield to “threats and bullying tactics” of a bygone era.

“Illegality, no matter how often it’s repeated, does not generate law,” the Cypriot government said, adding that it would step up its legal and diplomatic fight, especially within the European Union.

Turkey doesn’t recognise Cyprus as a state and claims some 44% of the island’s exclusive economic zone as its own, saying it’s acting to protect its interests and those of breakaway Turkish Cypriots.

The EU has already imposed sanctions against Turkey for earlier drilling activities in waters where Cyprus has exclusive economic rights but that aren’t licensed out to energy companies. The Yavuz is the second warshipescorted drillship that Turkey has dispatched to drill off Cyprus, joining the Fatih and other research vessels.

The Cypriot government has issued international arrest warrants against top executives from energy companies assisting the Turkish drillships.