Turkey’s hydrocarbon exploration drive in the eastern Mediterranean seems to be expanding to the far west of Cyprus toward the southeast of the Greek island of Crete and Libya’s offshore waters after the November deal that Ankara struck with Libya’s Tripoli-based government on delimiting maritime zones between the two countries. The exploration efforts have been coupled with fresh Turkish moves in the Libyan conflict since the signing of the deal.

According to a navigational warning that Ankara issued Jan. 14, Turkish seismic research ship Oruc Reis will be conducting seismic surveys in an area about 200 miles to the west of Cyprus and some 90 miles to the east of Crete, accompanied by two logistic support vessels. The mission, scheduled to continue until April 10, is very close to the boundary zone outlined in the agreement with Libya’s Government of National Accord (GNA).

Never before has a Turkish research ship gone so close to Crete and Libya for exploratory work, intended to lay the ground for Turkey’s demarcation and licensing of drilling zones in the eastern Mediterranean, where tensions are already running high between Ankara and a number of closely aligned littoral states, including Greece, the internationally recognized Greek Cypriot government of long-divided Cyprus, Israel and Egypt. One of Turkey’s two deep-sea drill ships, the Fatih and the Yavuz, could join the Oruc Reis in the area in the coming months.

As of Jan. 29, the Fatih is at the Tasucu port on Turkey’s southern coast, awaiting its next mission after completing drilling operations at the Magusa-1 borehole off the Karpas peninsula in northeast Cyprus since early January. The Yavuz, meanwhile, continues drilling operations at the Lefkosa-1 borehole in Zone G to the south of Cyprus, which is close to Block 8, claimed by the Greek Cypriots, and Israel’s Leviathan gas field.