Cyprus’ sovereign rights are well defined and based on the Law of the Sea UN
Convention, Foreign Minister Erato Kozakou Markoullis said on Saturday,
responding to questions regarding statements by Turkish Minister for EU Affairs
and Chief Negotiator Egemen Bagis who said that “Cyprus’ Exclusive Economic
Zone is disputed“.
“This is why we have signed agreements with
neighboring countries for the delineation of our Exclusive Economic Zone”,
Markoullis said in statements to the press.
Furthermore she recalled
that Turkey has not yet signed the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.
Turkey, whose troops occupy Cyprus’ northern part since they invaded the
island in 1974, does not recognise the Republic of Cyprus, an EU member since
2004.
Recently, Nicosia announced in the Official Journal of the EU a
call for an international tender for off-shore hydrocarbon exploration and
exploitation within the Republic’s Economic Exclusive Zone, signaling the
initiation of a second round of licensing.
In response to Cypriot
exploration activities, Ankara has deployed in the past warships in the Eastern
Mediterranean and has signed an illegal agreement with the Turkish Cypriot
regime in occupied Cyprus to delineate what it calls continental shelf.
The government of Cyprus has protested to the UN and the EU Turkey’s
moves, saying it has a sovereign right to exploit its natural resources,
pointing out that Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots will benefit from any
benefits that may come from oil drilling.
Cyprus has signed an agreement
to delineate the Exclusive Economic Zone with Egypt and Israel with a view to
exploit any possible natural gas and oil reserves in its EEZ. A similar
agreement has been signed with Lebanon but the Lebanese Parliament has not yet
ratified it.
