Turkey Rejects Greek Accusations Of Violating Sea Laws

Turkey on Friday rejected Greek accusations of sea law violations in the waters around Cyprus.



The Greek Foreign Ministry accused Turkey of violating the law of the sea by sending an oil and gas exploration ship to the eastern Mediterranean in the first week of October. 



"Greece's logic is wrong and Greece is undermining the Cyprus peace talks," Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesperson Tanju Bilgic said in a statement Friday.



Greece is in a "misperception" about the peace talks for the island, the statement said. 



Greek Foreign Minister Evangelos Venizelos had claimed that Turkey sabotaged negotiations between Turkish and Greek Cypriots, which were suspended by Greek Cypriot leader Nicos Anastasiades early this month following reports that a Turkish warship had been sent to monitor Greek Cypriot hydrocarbon exploration.



The Greek foreign minister also claimed that Turkey attempted to create a crisis by sending the ship at a time when the international community's attention was focused on combat with the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, and crises in both the southern and eastern regions of Europe.



Turkey and the Turkish Cypriot government have strongly opposed any unilateral move by the Greek Cypriot administration to explore any hydrocarbon resources around the island, saying that its natural resources should be exploited in a fair manner under a united Cyprus.



"The main aim of the talks are to establish two states in the island with equal rights," Bilgic said. "Ignoring that and legitimizing the actions of the Greek side clearly cannot help anything."



The spokesperson also recalled that steps taken in the eastern Mediterranean while ignoring the international law will only cause more problems.



The island of Cyprus has remained divided into Greek and Turkish parts since a Greek Cypriot coup was followed by a Turkish peace mission to aid Turkish Cypriots in the north in 1974.



The Greek Cypriot administration is a member of the EU and is internationally recognized except by Turkey -- the only country which recognizes the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.



www.aa.com.tr/en - Ankara