Cavusoglu: Any Cypriot energy deal that excludes Turkey is ‘invalid’

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu has said that any Cypriot deal for oil and gas exploration in the Eastern Mediterranean that excludes Turkey is “invalid,” according to reports Friday.

According to the same reports, Cavusoglu also brushed off a decision by Cyprus to arrest warrants for the crew of a Turkish drill ship anchored close to its coast for allegedly infringing territory over which the island has rights to explore for oil and gas.

“We will not back down and we will take all the necessary steps,” the Turkish minister was quoted as saying. “The Greek Cypriots should know their limits.”

Meanwhile, speaking during an inspection of the Hellenic Navy fleet Friday, Greek President Prokopis Pavlopoulos urged Turkey to abide by international and EU law.

Pavlopoulos said that respect for the rules is a condition for good neighborly relations with Greece as well as for Ankara’s EU membership ambitions.