Category: Cyprus/TRNC

Turkey is eager to host oil pipelines that will connect much-needed energy resources with global markets, Energy Minister Taner Yıldız has said, while signaling a conditional willingness to transport much-disputed eastern Mediterranean resources.

REUTERS Photo

“Turkey is warm to all natural gas pipelines that will pass through its soil,” Yıldız said at the International Mediterranean Energy Conference hosted by the Istanbul of Chamber of Commerce on Dec. 8.

The remarks came as he was talking about a potential project to transport natural gas resources from off Cyprus to Europe. Yıldız stressed that Turkey would be willing to ease conditions to facilitate the economic feasibility of the project if the “required political environment can be established,” meaning an equal distribution of the resources between the Turkish and Greek Cypriot sides of the divided island.

Greek Cyprus’ independent hydrocarbon search off the island has sparked a crisis between the parties involved, as Ankara is pressuring for an equal split of the resources. The crisis further deepened two months ago, after Turkey sent the seismic research vessel Barbaros to nearby regions for its own oil exploration and deployed a warship to closely follow the activities of a Greek Cyprus platform in the island’s disputed economic zone

 

 

However, Yıldız emphasized that Turkey is “positive” about transporting all of its neighbors’ energy resources to consuming destinations.

Citing the existing Baku-Tflisi-Ceyhan and Kirkuk-Yumurtalık crude oil routes passing through Turkey, as well as the under-construction Trans-Anatolian gas pipeline, he said these projects were based on the idea of sharing neighbors’ resources with the world.

In a separate news conference with his Algerian counterpart Youcef Yousfi, the minister also spoke of a recently proposed Russian gas pipeline route through Turkey, describing the plan as a “realizable project” rather than just a political maneuver.

“If there is an agreement over technicalities, then it’s a realizable project,” Yıldız said, pointing to a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) agreement inked between the Turkish Petroleum Pipeline Corporation (BOTAŞ) and Russian gas giant Gazprom as an indication of the projects viability.

During a recent visit to Ankara, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the cancellation of the multi-billion-dollar South Stream gas pipeline to Europe, saying instead that Russia would work with Turkey on a gas hub.

Speaking during the news conference, Yıldız also announced Turkey is in talks with the Algerian government to buy oil products, including crude oil.

The two governments have recently renewed and upgraded a 10-year liquefied natural gas (LNG) deal.
December/08/2014

  Küfi Seydali

 

Jack Straw

Jack Straw, the former British Foreign Secretary snubbed by the late President Tassos Papadopoulos for meeting in the north with a Turkish Cypriot leader in 2006, is calling on the international community to accept the division of Cyprus.
Straw has often in the past brought up the issue of two states in Cyprus, and in an interview with Turkish news agency Anadolu in London on Tuesday he said the island’s division needed to be accepted as a reality.
“If it had been possible for there to be a happy, united island, well, that would be the best solution, with a bi-zonal, bi-communal constitution. But the majority of people living on the island in the Greek-Cypriot part don’t want to accept that,” Straw said.
He referred back to the 2004 referendum on the Annan Plan, which was rejected by the majority of Greek Cypriots saying the failure of negotiations was not the fault of the Turkish Cypriots.
“So my view is the international community should accept the reality that there is division and that you have partition,” he said. “And then these two rather small nations would be able to develop their own relationship and I think it would be a cleaner system.”

 

 

  Küfi Seydali

 

Naval Forces Commander Adm Bülent Bostanoğlu arrives on board the TCG Büyükada in a helicopter for a briefing during the Blue Whale military drill. The Turkish navy has been authorized to act on the crisis in Cyprus, Bostanoğlu said.

 

The Turkish Navy has been authorized by the government for the full implementation of recently amended rules of engagement in the eastern Mediterranean in the face of growing tension between littoral countries, including Turkey, Greek Cyprus, Egypt and Israel over oil and natural gas drilling projects.

“The Prime Ministry handed over the rules of engagement to the Chief of General Staff and the Chief of Staff handed them over to the Naval Forces Command. We will act in line with these rules of engagement in the event we face a situation over this issue,” Adm. Bülent Bostanoğlu, the naval forces commander, told reporters Nov. 9 in Muğla as he participated in the Blue Whale-2014 naval exercise.

“Our naval forces elements will continue their mission of situational awareness in the region.”
Bostanoğlu’s statement came after a question on which rules of engagement the Turkish Navy would follow if Turkish vessels confront Greek or Israeli warships in the eastern Mediterranean.

Tension between Turkey and the Greek Cyprus-Greece duo has increased recently after the Greek Cypriot government issued licenses for oil and natural gas exploration in its claimed economic exclusive zones in the eastern Mediterranean. Turkey strongly criticized the move, saying it was a clear breach of Turkey and Turkish Cypriots’ rights and sent a seismic exploration vessel to the region for its own drilling purposes and one warship for the surveillance of foreign platform vessels being used for oil exploration.

“The Turkish Naval Forces is providing support and close protection to the Barbaros Hayrettin Paşa Research Vessel. On the other hand, it continues to keep the drill ship hired by the Greek Cypriot administration under surveillance from nine kilometers’ distance. The order given to us for the moment is not to enter into this nine-kilometer area. That’s why no incident of harassment or disturbance has occurred,” he said.

The Turkish naval commander said the ongoing Blue Whale exercise had nothing to do with ongoing tension and that it was a biannual exercise whose preparations started two years ago. “The objective of the exercise is to improve cooperation with our allies and particularly to perform anti-submarine defense operations,” he said.

The tension between Turkey and Greek Cyprus has recently turned into a regional one as the latter took advantage of the former’s worsening relations with Egypt and Israel, which both have similar claims in the eastern Mediterranean. Greek, Greek Cypriot and Egyptian leaders came together at a tripartite summit in Cairo where they discussed regional security and economic cooperation.

Geek Cypriot Leader Nicos Anastasiades, Gen. El-Sissi of Egypt and Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras in Cairo (08.11.2014)

Greek Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades on Nov. 8 accused Turkey of “provocative actions” that he said Ankara was hindering the island’s peace talks and compromising security in the eastern Mediterranean.

“Turkey’s provocative actions do not just compromise the peace talks, but also affect security in the eastern Mediterranean region,” Anastasiades said at a joint press conference with his Egyptian counterpart, Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, and Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras.

“For the [Cyprus peace] negotiations to succeed, Turkey needs to show a positive intention and adopt a constructive stance through positive and effective steps in this direction,” he said.

Ankara issued a notice that a Turkish seismic vessel would carry out a survey until Dec. 30 in the same area where the Italian-Korean energy consortium ENI-Kogas is operating. Ankara opposes the Greek Cypriot government’s exploitation of offshore energy reserves before a deal is reached to solve the decades-long division of the east Mediterranean island.
November/09/2014

Hurriyet Daily News

 

  Kufi Seydali

 

In this photo provided by Egypt’s state news agency MENA, Greek Cypriot leader Nicos Anastasiades, from left, Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi and Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras shake hands to pose forphotos after a press conference in Cairo, Egypt, Saturday, Nov. 8, 2014.

 

Greek Cypriot Leader Nicos Anastasiades on Nov. 8 accused Turkey of “provocative actions” that he said are hindering the island’s peace talks and compromising security in the eastern Mediterranean.

Last month Greek Cyprus suspended its participation in UN-led peace talks with Turkey amid tensions over Ankara’s determination to search for oil and gas in the same region where the Greek Cypriot government has licensed exploratory drills in an exclusive economic zone.

“Turkey’s provocative actions do not just compromise the peace talks, but also affect security in the eastern Mediterranean region,” Anastasiades said during a visit to Cairo.

“For the (peace) negotiations to succeed Turkey needs to show positive intention and adopt a constructive stance through positive and effective steps in this direction,” he said, according to a translation.

The Greek Cypriot leader was speaking at a joint news conference in Cairo with his Egyptian counterpart Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras.

Since Oct. 20 a Turkish survey vessel has encroached Cyprus’s exclusive economic zone off the island’s southern coast, according to Nicosia.

Ankara had issued a notice that a Turkish seismic vessel would carry out a survey until Dec. 30 in the same area where the Italian-Korean energy consortium ENI-Kogas is operating.

Ankara opposes the Greek Cypriot government’s exploitation of offshore energy reserves before a deal is reached to solve the decades-long division of the east Mediterranean island.

Anastasiades, Samaras and Sisi were at a summit in Cairo on Nov. 8 to discuss regional security and economic cooperation.

  Kufi Seydali

Comment:

The Greeks are once again playing with fire! It should not be forgotten that General Sissi of Egypt is a military dictator. It is also worth remembering that in 1974 it was the military Dictators in Athens who overthrew Makarios with the aim of declaring ENOSIS (Union with Greece). What disaster that brought upon all Cypriots is well known. The Greeks should also decide on which side they stand! On one hand they claim to be  strategic partners of the USA (Joe Biden) and on the other hand play Roulette with Putin. They recently carried out joint exercises with  Israel and now sign security agreements with Egypt! Common sense tells us that such a complex game is bound to go wrong.

KS

UN SPECIAL Adviser on Cyprus Espen Barth Eide said yesterday he remained “realistically optimistic” that the two communities could set aside the standoff over the hydrocarbons row and resume peace talks.

UN Special Adviser Espen Barth Eide  with UN Special Representative for Cyprus Lisa Buttenheim at the Presidential Palace yesterday

 

Speaking to the media after a long meeting with Greek Cypriot Leader Nicos Anastasiades at the Presidential Palace, the UN official said it was necessary for the leaders of the communities to reach an agreement.

Quizzed about the prospects for a deal allowing the resumption of reunification negotiations, Eide said he did not expect a deal today.

Responding to a question as to why his meeting with Anastasiades lasted two hours, Eide said only: “Good meetings always take time.”

Eide said both sides in Cyprus should focus on the future. Asked if he brought a formula to solve the impasse, he said: “I have a number of ideas which you can call a formula or package”, adding that “it is too early to reveal the details because I am still in discussions with both sides and nothing has been agreed so far, nor did I expect anything to be agreed”.

“But I want to insist on which is my main message, that both leaders agree that hydrocarbons will be part of the shared future of a united Cyprus. There is a striking agreement on the future and almost no agreement on the present,” he said, urging everyone to focus on the future.

Asked whether he believed that the issue of natural gas should be put on the negotiating table, he said that “if the table means UN table, that is up to the sides”. He stressed that it was important for everyone in Cyprus to discuss what will happen in the future when there is a unified island.

For his part, government spokesman Nicos Christodoulides told reporters that Anastasiades and Eide discussed “a range of ideas” on how peace talks might resume.

“There has been no conclusion. We welcome Mr. Eide’s efforts,” Christodoulides said.

To the Greek Cypriot side, he added, the cessation of Turkish provocations was a precondition for returning to the negotiating table.

Earlier in the day, Eide met with Turkish Cypriot leader Dervis Eroglu, who on Wednesday said that the withdrawal of a Turkish research vessel from Cyprus’ Exclusive Economic Zone was “out of the question.”

Turkish Cypriot Leader Dervis Eroglu said that no pre-conditions will be accepted.

On Wednesday, speaking in Athens, Eide had described the dispute between Turkey and Cyprus over offshore drilling as “really quite dangerous” and he encouraged all parties to do their utmost to avoid any further escalation.

The United States has expressed concern about recent developments in the eastern Mediterranean.

  Kufi Seydali

Comment by John Mavro

‘There is a striking agreement on the future and almost no agreement on the present,” he said, urging everyone to focus on the future.”

Even though Mr Eide has been in his position as UN SPECIAL Adviser on Cyprus for a relatively short period, with his statement above he seems to have identified the core issue of the long running saga called the Cyprus ”problem”

Which, as he absolutely correctly states, there is NO agreement on the present. Or the past.

For many generations, the ”governing elite”, has ensured that its electorate lives in the past by adopting inward and backward looking policies in order to maintain its grip on power.

Consider the following:

– an education system that from an early age promotes narrow minded and xenophobic nationalism by brainwashing young minds that the all Turks, and by extensions, TCs, are our natural enemies
– the church which continues with this type of ”education” among its followers by portraying the other side as godless barbarians.
– a political system that glorifies past disasters and failures such as EOKA, Makarios and Grivas
– and which to this day has not tried to learn from the catastrophic consequences of mistakes made not only by the above, but subsequent ”leaders” too.
– a refusal to identify and bring to justice the real culprits of the 1974 coup and consequent catastrophe so that the nation can believe that justice has been done. And can now look ahead.
– an obsession with never ending memorials and remembrances
– total absence of vision for the future, especially among the corrupt ”leadership”
– short- termism which is prevalent in all aspects of society without thought or planning for the future. Prime example being instant gratification and excess consumption without any thought about what happens thereafter. As evidenced by the recent orgy of excessive borrowing which led to NPLs representing more than 50% of all loans. Resulting in the collapse of the banking system and the bankruptcy pf the economy.

Against this background, Mr Eide is absolutely correct. We cannot agree, among ourselves, what we really want; who is to blame for these disasters; who should be punished; whether we actually want a settlement to the Cyprus ”problem” etc.

But because our ”politicians” and ”governing elite” are expedient, self serving and corrupt individuals who prefer the present status quo since it suits their pockets and thieving self enrichment ways, they are too cowardly to openly and publicly state that they want de jure partition.

Hence they continue with the myth about the future. And how they ALL agree about there being a ”settlement” to unify the island. When in reality its is the last thing they actually want.

This is a schizophrenic lunatic asylum consisting of a population that has lost its moral compass; and is being led by unscrupulous thieves who prefer that its electorate live in the past and not question their criminal misdeeds. But will always provide false hope on a ”solution” by appearing as champions of a settlement of the Cyprus ”problem”.

Despite this, we can only be grateful to Mr Eide for his efforts in trying to bring these very stubborn Cypriot donkeys together. And wish him best of luck.

While the sensible among us pray for a major miracle. Which as we all know, are rather very rare.