Ankara denounces five-party Cairo summit on eastern Mediterranean

ANKARA

Ankara denounced a recent meeting on Jan. 9 held between Greece, France, the Greek Cypriot administration, Egypt and Italy against a recent maritime delimitation deal between Turkey and Libya.

In its own official statement, the Turkish Foreign Ministry said declarations following the five-party meeting on Jan. 8 about the eastern Mediterranean region was based on “factitious arguments and false premises.”

“The two memoranda of understanding that we signed with the legitimate and the internationally recognized government of Libya are legitimate and fully compatible with international law,” the ministry’s statement read.

The ministry also added that Turkey has the longest coastline in the Mediterranean and “has the right to speak on any project” about the region.

“In order to transform the eastern Mediterranean into an area of cooperation rather than of conflict, we would like to take this opportunity to express yet again our readiness for cooperation with all parties, with the exception of GCA [Greek Cypriot Administration],”the statement added.

Turkey, Greece to hold regular political consultations after EastMed dispute

On Jan. 2, the Turkish Parliament ratified a motion authorizing the government to send troops to Libya following deals on military cooperation and maritime boundaries in the eastern Mediterranean that were struck between Ankara and the GNA on Nov. 27.

The agreements were a response to attempts to sideline Turkey and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) in the eastern Mediterranean, the ministry said, adding that the five-party meeting’s statements revealed the merit of Turkey’s steps in the region.

Turkey-Libya deals 'void': Egypt, France, Greece and Greek Cyprus