Erdogan says he is sending exploration ship into east Med
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday said that he has sent a hydrocarbon exploration vessel into the eastern Mediterranean.
Ankara will not allow the interests of Turks in the occupied north of Cyprus to be affected, he added in a speech at the presidential palace, saying that any activity in Cyprus’s exclusive economic zone needs to include both sides.
Turkey’s stance towards exploration projects for oil and natural gas in the area has “hopefully taught some a lesson,” Erdogan said, referring to efforts to block Italian energy company Eni from drilling in Cyprus's EEZ last month.
"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," Turkey's Daily Sabah quoted Erdogan as saying.
