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901. Old rivalries continue in eastern Mediterranean

Greece has issued a competing navigational telex after Turkey extended seismic surveys in the eastern Mediterranean, with no signs between the two NATO allies of burying the hatchet over old rivalries that continue to this day...

902. Ankara accuses Athens of beating the war drum

Turkey says the European Union is not sincere in its efforts to weigh in on the maritime disputes in the eastern Mediterranean, while accusing Athens of beating the war drum by intending to expand Greek territorial waters...

903. EU set to sanction Turkey over ships in disputed East Med exploration area

The European Union is preparing sanctions against Turkey that could be discussed at the bloc's next summit on September 24 in response to the Eastern Mediterranean dispute with Greece, the EU’s top diplomat said on Friday. ...

904. Greece starts more training exercises amid Turkey tension

Greece and the United Arab Emirates have begun joint air force training exercises in the eastern Mediterranean, in the latest build-up of military forces in the region where Greece and Turkey are at odds over seabed mineral rights....

905. International EastMed tension-diffusing efforts battling on

International moves to de-escalate tension in the eastern Mediterranean continued on Tuesday, with the German Chancellor holding a tete-a-tete with the NATO Secretary General and the kickstarting of the informal meetings of EU ministers in Berlin, where regional tensions were at the top of the agenda....

906. Six Greek F-16s participated in joint drill off Cyprus

Six Greek F-16 fighter jets participated on Thursday in joint military exercises with Cyprus, France and Italy in the Eastern Mediterranean....

907. Cyprus detects 10 new cases

The Cyprus health ministry announced 10 new coronavirus cases on Wednesday, when 3,207 tests were conducted, bringing the total detected so far to 1,484....

908. Greece to extend territorial waters amid dispute with Turkey

Turkey’s president warned Greece on Wednesday not to test his country’s patience or courage as the NATO allies remained locked in a tense dispute over offshore energy exploration in the eastern Mediterranean, while Greece announced plans to extend its territorial waters along its western coastline....

909. Cyprus detects 14 new coronavirus cases

The Cyprus health ministry announced 14 new coronavirus cases on Tuesday, when 2,769 lab tests were conducted to check samples for the virus....

910. German FM calls for ‘direct discussions’ between Greece and Turkey

“The windows for dialogue between Greece and Turkey must now be opened further and not closed,” German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said in an emailed statement before meeting Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and his counterpart, Nikos Dendias, in Athens on Tuesday....

911. NAVTEX wars continue in east Med

Athens has issued an advisory to mariners concerning Greek air and naval forces conducting exercises in an area that overlaps with the one reserved by Ankara in a similar advisory issued on Sunday...

912. Mitsotakis spells out message to Turkey

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis called on Turkey to “stop the provocations” in the Eastern Mediterranean and return to the negotiating table in order to resolve disagreements regarding the delimitation of maritime zones...

913. After collision, Athens plans next steps

Greek Defense Minister Nikos Panagiotopoulos on Tuesday congratulated the captain of the Greek frigate Limnos that accidentally collided with a Turkish ship during a standoff in the Eastern Mediterranean last week and indicated that Greece is prepared to hold talks with Turkey on the condition that it withdraws its warships and seismic research vessels from the area of the Greek continental shelf...

914. Cyprus open to defining maritime zones

Cyprus said on Tuesday it was willing to engage with all its neighbours on defining maritime boundaries, amid a tense stand-off with Turkey in the eastern Mediterranean over jurisdiction in the energy-rich waters...

915. Nicosia, Athens set tone for Turkey response

Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias said on Tuesday that the Cyprus problem remained at the top of his country’s agenda during a visit on the island, with his Cypriot counterpart calling on the European Union to use a carrot-and-stick approach towards Turkey...

916. New measures as clusters appear to be growing

Another dozen of new cases of the coronavirus included secondary contacts such as a person who got infected at a party earlier this month, with government agencies coordinating further measures by week’s end...

917. Greek FM makes impromptu visit to Cyprus

Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias is on a surprise one-day trip to the Republic of Cyprus on Tuesday for talks with his Cypriot counterpart Nikos Christodoulides...

918. Borrell doubles down on Turkey criticism

EU High Representative on Foreign Policy Josep Borrell scorned Turkey over the weekend, calling on Ankara to end drilling activities off the island of Cyprus and engage in a broad dialogue with the European Union...

919. Expert raises Covid-19 alarm for this week

One coronavirus case has been detected at a kindergarten in Nicosia, while there were 21 cases over the weekend in the Republic of Cyprus, with health experts remaining concerned over asymptomatic carriers and protocol violators...

920. Rival warnings keep on in the Mediterranean

Rival warnings continued to be issued over waters in the eastern Mediterranean this weekend, after EU ministers reaffirmed the bloc’s solidarity with Greece and the Republic of Cyprus and Turkey saying it would not “bow to banditry”...

921. Ankara responds to Greek warnings

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan says an attack on Oruc Reis in the eastern Mediterranean would incur a “high price” while at the same time calling for a win-win solution through dialogue...

922. Navigating under pressure

The latest crisis in relations between Athens and Ankara is different from previous ones. It is broader in scope, it has a hegemonic dimension, and it is permeated by an imperial rather than – as in the past – nationalist attitude....

923. Athens warns of possible 'accident' in East Med

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Wednesday warned about the possibility of an "accident" in the Eastern Mediterranean where Greek and Turkish naval forces have gathered after Ankara decided to sent a vessel to conduct seismic research south of Kastellorizo...

924. Dendias to meet Pompeo in Vienna

Athens says it will not accept a fait accompli in the Eastern Mediterranean, with reports saying Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias is set to meet US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in Vien on Friday....

925. Cyprus announces one coronavirus death, 25 new cases

The Cyprus Health Ministry on Tuesday announced 25 new coronavirus cases and one death, involving a 77-year-old who suffered from underlying health conditions but who ultimately died as a result of his coronavirus infection....

926. Turkey says Greece making a ‘big fuss’

Ankara has accused Athens of having “no legal basis” for raising objections over Turkish exploration in the eastern Mediterranean, as Greek armed forces were placed on high alert Monday after Turkey sent a seismic survey vessel in contested waters...

927. Turkish seismic research vessel within Cyprus EEZ

The Turkish seismic research vessel Oruc Reis was spotted on Monday off the Western coast of Cyprus and in the area delineated by Turkey’s fresh Navtex....

928. Regional tensions flare up anew as Turkey issues new Navtex

929. At least seven die in massive flood on Evia

At least seven people died and one person was still missing after a storm hit the Greek island of Evia early Sunday, causing massive floods and blocking exit roads...

930. Ankara slams Greece-Egypt maritime deal

Ankara was caught off guard Thursday when a secret partial maritime agreement emerged between Athens and Cairo, with the Turkish foreign ministry calling the deal 'null and void'...