March 28, 2016•Update: March 29, 2016
LEFKOSA
The Eastern Mediterranean’s hydrocarbon resources can provide "wealth to both sides" of the island, said the Turkish Cypriot leader amid ongoing talks with the Greek Cypriots over a possible reunification.
"We should not be turning this common wealth into an issue of tension," said President Mustafa Akinci of Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.
His remarks came Monday following a meeting in Lefkosa with Greek Cypriot leader Nicos Anastasiades hosted by Special UN Envoy Espen Barth Eide.
The leaders of the two communities can handle in detail the issue in the negotiation period, Akinci said.
Recent negotiations, spurred by Akinci’s election last April, are seeking to reunify the island under a federal system and the participants have spoken of their hopes of achieving agreement by the end of the year.
Akinci said the hydrocarbon resources should be used wisely, "which could ease a solution" for the long-divided Mediterranean Island.
"Other countries may also benefit from that. Turkey, in the future, may play a key role in transporting gas from Cyprus and Israel to Europe," he added.
The Greek Cypriot administration last week announced a tender for new hydrocarbon exploration offshore the island.
Turkey balked, saying it would not allow foreign companies to conduct hydrocarbon exploration.
“The Greek Cypriot administration’s decision to open a tender not only disregards the Turkish Cypriot side’s equal rights and interests over the island’s natural resources but also violates our country’s continental shelf rights in the region," the Turkish Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
Earlier this year at Davos, Akinci and Anastasiades stated that both communities should cooperate on energy matters.
The discovery of hydrocarbon in the region opened up new possibilities for cooperation and synergy, Anastasiades said.
The leaders are scheduled to meet again on April 18 and 25 as part of the ongoing negotiation process.
