ENERGY: EU expects Turkey to respect sovereign rights of Cyprus

Brussels expects Turkey to respect the sovereign rights of every member state, European Council President Donald Tusk warned Ankara over its illegal activities int he EEZ of Cyprus.

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President Anastasiades informed EU leaders – at the informal European Council in Sibiu – about the Turkish activities in the island’s exclusive economic zone and Brussels it would closely monitor the situation.

"The EU stands united behind Cyprus and expects Turkey to respect sovereign rights of an EU member state,” Tusk told reporters.

Cyprus government spokesman Prodromos Prodromou said the president was fully satisfied with the support he received from his counterparts.

EU Commissioner for Migration, Dimitris Avramopoulos said Europe has sent clear messages, but has not yet come to consider measures in connection with Turkey`s illegal drilling off Cyprus.

"Europe has sent clear messages, but we have not yet reached the point of looking at measures … I want to believe that measures will be avoided and that prudence, logic and the spirit of the time will prevail," Avramopoulos said.

He said the key to Turkey`s European perspective was to resolve the Cyprus problem in general and to settle the issues that have arisen.

Europe’s relations with Turkey were very much defined by how things were evolving in Cyprus, Avramopoulos said, adding the issue should be addressed through multilateral diplomacy guided by international and EU law.

“Turkey holds the key and it has to prove in practice how it understands relations, with the Republic of Cyprus, an EU member-state”.

Ankara has no diplomatic relations with Nicosia as it does recognise the Republic of Cyprus as a sovereign state.

President Nicos Anastasiades has asked his EU counterparts to examine concrete measures or sanctions against individuals and companies involved in exploratory drilling off Cyprus.