Turkey ‘would not accept’ Greece-Egypt Mediterranean deal
Any delimitation of the Mediterranean between Egypt and Greece will not be acceptable if it affects Turkeyâs national interests, Prime Minister Ahmet DavutoÄlu has said.
DavutoÄluâs remarks were published on Dec. 7 in the Greek newspaper To Vima, in an interview given at the end of the third High-Level Cooperation Council meeting between Greece and Turkey in Athens on Dec. 6.
âIf Greece signs the agreement with Egypt, we would not accept it if it affects our national interests. This agreement will not exist for us,â he said.
Ankara believes there can be no demarcation in the Eastern Mediterranean without Turkey, he said, adding that âtrilateral cooperationâ between Greece-Cyprus-Egypt or Greece-Cyprus-Israel for natural resources amounts to âopportunismâ that comes at a âbad time.â
The heads of state of Cyprus, Egypt and Greece met on Nov. 8 in Cairo to discuss how to boost energy cooperation, hoping they could sideline Turkey in the Mediterranean.
Israel also recently held talks with the EU to decide if they would invest in a pipeline from its Mediterranean gas fields through Cyprus.
Prime Minister DavutoÄlu said the gas pipeline imagined between Israel and Cyprus through Greece to Europe was âunsustainable economically and technically.â
He denied the cooperation deals were a threat to Turkey. âWe do not feel any threat. No one can threaten us,â he said.
âIn the Eastern Mediterranean, all arrangements, especially the boundaries on maritime zones, should be made after negotiations with all parties. If two or three parties declare an Exclusive Economic Zone without consulting other affected parties that are also interested and have a legitimate interest, then it is...
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