European Parliament expresses solidarity with Cyprus
European Parliament President Antonio Tajani said Friday that Turkey’s actions within Cyprus’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) do not contribute to its European Union prospects.
Speaking to reporters in Brussels on the sidelines of an informal EU summit, Tajani said, “We are watching with great concern and attention the efforts of President [Nicos] Anastasiades to find a solution with the occupied by the Turks part of Cyprus, but unfortunately he has not reached this goal, probably by responsibility of his interlocutors.”
He added that he called Anastasiades to express his solidarity, and that he “also declared then that these actions definitely do not contribute to Turkey’s European perspective.”
“The choice of dialogue and peace are always positive,” he said.
On Thursday, Foreign Minister Ioannis Kasoulides warned that if international law does not prevail then the “law of the jungle” will become the norm.
Speaking at a seminar on Thursday evening debating Greece’s role in the Eastern Mediterranean, Kasoulides said Turkey is using force to impose its will with a total disregard for international law.
He added that Nicosia does not expect its partners within the framework of trilateral cooperation to counter Turkish forces in the Eastern Mediterranean.
“These trilateral cooperation schemes have nothing to do with a military alliance or an alliance that turns against other states,” he said, stressing that other European countries, apart from Greece and Cyprus, also have a role to play in the region and must stand up to Turkey’s provocative actions.
Greek conservative MP Giorgos Koumoutsakos, who also attended the event, said that Ankara’s behavior in Cyprus’s EEZ “went too far.”
Meanwhile, House President Demetris Syllouris urged the international community Friday to exert pressure on Turkey over what he described as its “illegal and provocative undertakings.”
“[Turkey’s military exercises] not only create a climate of intimidation for the companies that operate in full accordance with international law in Cyprus’s EEZ and continental shelf, but also clearly result in sustaining a climate of mistrust,” Syllouris said in a letter he sent to European Parliament President Antonio Tajani and to the parliamentary speakers of EU members-states and other international bodies.
