Turkey stops eastern Mediterranean drilling, wants talks with Greece
The area in which Turkey planned to drill for gas is considered by Greece and Cyprus to be their waters.
Turkey is halting its plans to drill for energy in the eastern Mediterranean. The news could reduce tensions between Turkey and Europe on the thorny issue for the time being.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan ordered a stop to seismic research activities pertaining to gas exploration in the sea, the state-run Anadolu Agency reported Tuesday. Erdogan’s office now says it is willing to negotiate with Greece “without any precondition,” according to Anadolu.
Turkey planned to drill for gas in the eastern Mediterranean based on an agreement with Libya’s UN-recognized Government of National Accord (GNA). However, Greece, Cyprus and the European Union consider the area to be Greek and Cypriot maritime territory.
Turkey has received significant condemnation for its project there from European states, most recently from Germany.
