Turkey has sharply criticised the signing of an Exclusive Economic Zone agreement between Cyprus and Lebanon, claiming the Republic of Cyprus has no authority to sign bilateral agreements and does not represent the entire island, according to a skai.gr publication.
The Turkish Foreign Ministry issued a statement on Thursday describing the deal as a unilateral action and an attempt at appropriation, arguing that Cyprus lacks the right to sign bilateral agreements.
“The ‘Greek Cypriot Administration’ does not represent the Turkish Cypriots, nor the entire island, and has no authority to take such decisions,” the ministry said in its statement.
The ministry said that “since 2003, the ‘Greek Cypriot administration’ has been signing bilateral agreements with coastal countries in the region regarding the delimitation of maritime areas around Cyprus whilst ignoring Turkish Cypriots, who it described as the sovereign constituent parts of the island”.
“The EEZ agreement between Lebanon and the ‘Greek Cypriot Administration’ was originally signed in 2007 but has not yet entered into force. It was re-signed on Tuesday between the two countries”.
Whilst the area covered by the agreement falls outside Turkey’s continental shelf in the Eastern Mediterranean, which Turkey registered with the UN on 18 March 2020, the country approaches the issue within the framework of the Cyprus issue and Turkish Cypriot rights, according to the statement.
The signing of such an agreement “between Lebanon or other coastal countries in the region and the ‘Greek Cypriot Administration’ of Southern Cyprus directly concerns the equal rights and interests of Turkish Cypriots on the island”, the ministry said.
“We would like to remind you that the ‘Greek Cypriot Administration’ does not represent the Turkish Cypriots or the entire island and has no authority to take such decisions concerning the entire island,” the statement said.
Turkey called on the international community, particularly countries in the region, not to support these “unilateral steps by the ‘Greek Cypriot Administration’ of Southern Cyprus and not to become instruments of attempts to appropriate the legitimate rights and interests of Turkish Cypriots, who are the sovereign and equal constituent parts of the island”.
According to the statement, Turkey, “together with the ‘Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus’, will continue to resolutely defend the rights and interests of Turkish Cypriots”.
(information from skai.gr)
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