EU Resolution Against Turkey's Violation of Cyprus' Right to Exploit its EEZ
On 10 November 2014, the European Parliament voted on a resolution* “on Turkish actions creating tensions in the exclusive economic zone of Cyprus”. The European Parliament urged Turkey “to show restraint and act in accordance with international law”, deploring “the escalation of threats and unilateral action by Turkey against the Republic of Cyprus in relation to the EEZ” recalling the “legality of the EEZ of the Republic of Cyprus” [...]. The European Parliament called on Turkey to respect and fully implement the declaration issued by the European Community and its Member States on 21 September 2005, including the provision that “the recognition of all Member States is a necessary component of the accession process.”
The rest of the resolution stressed on the Republic of Cyprus’ sovereign right to explore its waters according to international law and UNCLOS and on the illegal and provocative nature of the Turkish vessels operating in and around Cyprus, disturbing the ongoing exploratory activities by ENI and KOGAS. The EU Parliament demanded the immediate withdrawal of Turkish vessels from Cyprus’ EEZ and asked Turkey to revoke its NAVTEX and respect the sovereignty of EU member states over their territorial waters.
Tensions between Cyprus and Turkey were renovated in October of this year when Turkey issued a NAVTEX (Navigational Telex) directive announcing its intention to conduct seismic surveys by a Turkish vessel in the Exclusive Economic Zone of the Republic of Cyprus. Turkey’s action provoked Cyprus’ indignation at a time when an ENI-KOGAS consortium is conducting offshore exploratory searches within Cyprus’ maritime waters.
Turkey repeatedly expressed its discontent in the past with Cyprus’ offshore hydrocarbon activities accusing the Cypriots of unilateral exploratory activities that will only benefit the Greek part of the island. The EU Parliament resolution included a mention that “any gas finds would benefit both communities in Cyprus if a lasting ,political solution can be found to end the conflict”.
The renewed friction between Cyprus and Turkey following Turkey’s issuance of the NAVTEX has led to the disruption of the peace talks aimed at achieving a solution for the divided island of Cyprus. In fact, Cyprus has been divided since 1974 and all efforts to achieve a fair, sustainable and permanent resolution have failed thus far. In its resolution, the EU Parliament reiterated “the importance it attaches to the normalisation of relations between Turkey and all EU Member States and is of the view that the continuation and/or repetition of these actions could have a negative impact on Turkey’s relations with the EU, including its accession process.”
Noble Energy made the first discovery offshore Cyprus in 2011. The Aphrodite field, situated in Block 12 of Cyprus’ EEZ, is estimated at 3.6 to 6 Tcf with a mean of 5 Tcf. The Republic of Cyprus licensed ENI, KOGAS and TOTAL in the hope that the companies will encounter additional amounts of gas that will justify the commercial viability of a planned onshore LNG terminal on the Vassilikos coast that will be used to export natural gas from Cyprus to export markets, including Europe and Asia. The newly found hydrocarbon wealth in the Eastern Mediterranean could encourage a new cooperation that would ensure long term growth and prosperity for the countries concerned. However, economic and political advantages from offshore riches will only benefit their owners if properly managed, and if political problems are overcome.
*The full text of the Resolution can be accessed here: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?pubRef=-%2f%2fEP%2f%2fTEXT%2bMOTION%2bP8-RC-2014-0211%2b0%2bDOC%2bXML%2bV0%2f%2fEN&language=EN
Karen Ayat is an analyst and Associate Partner at Natural Gas Europe focused on energy geopolitics. She holds an LLM in Commercial Law from City University London and a Bachelor of Laws from Université Saint Joseph in Beirut. Email Karen karen@minoils.com Follow her on Twitter: @karenayat