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211. Greek armed forces on alert over Turkish exploration off Kastellorizo

The Antalya Navtex station on Tuesday announced plans for a Turkish seismic survey south and east of the Greek island of Kastellorizo from July 21-August 2....

212. Athens and Ankara can settle differences via diplomacy, says Turkey’s presidential spokesman

Greece and Turkey can resolve their differences “within the framework of mutual respect,” Turkey’s presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalin has said, however stressing that Ankara will not compromise on its interests in the Aegean and the Eastern Mediterranean....

213. Greek-Turkish ties come under strain

The already tense relationship between Greece and Turkey has been strained further in the wake of Ankara’s leaking of a supposedly secret meeting between Greek, Turkish and German officials following Turkey’s controversial decision to convert Istanbul’s Hagia Sophia into a mosque and amid an increasingly aggressive Turkish stance in the East Mediterranean. The already tense relationship between Greece and Turkey has been strained further in the wake of Ankara’s leaking of a supposedly secret meeting between Greek, Turkish and German officials following Turkey’s controversial decision to convert Istanbul’s Hagia Sophia into a mosque and amid an increasingly aggressive Turkish stance in the East Mediterranean. ...

214. As EU mulls sanctions, Turkey defiant

The European Union is seeking ways of imposing sanctions on Turkey in the event that its transgressions in the East Mediterranean are scaled up, and in the wake of its decision to convert Hagia Sophia into a mosque. ...

215. Turkey reacts to US plan for military education, training for Cyprus

Turkey expressed its disagreement over a US government plan to make International Military Education and Training (IMET) available to Cyprus, saying it does not help resolve the island’s division....

216. Berlin to press Ankara over drilling plans for East Med

Berlin plans to play an active role, in the context of Germany's presidency of the European Council, in easing tensions in the Eastern Mediterranean where Turkey plans to expand its exploration for oil and gas in contravention of Greek and Cypriot exclusive economic zones...

217. Anastasiades: The use of weapons will mean the end of Greek-Cypriots

Any attempt to use military means to resolve the Cypriot issue will mean the end of Greek-Cypriots on the island, President Nicos Anastasiades has said, according to a short excerpt from a news show that will be aired in the country on July 1....

218. Cyprus, Greece to be Israeli tourists' first destination, Netanyhu says

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Tuesday he aims to resume regular flights to and from Israel by August 1, noting Greece and Cyprus will be the first destination for Israeli tourists....

219. Greece and Italy sign ‘historic’ maritime borders accord

Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias and his Italian counterpart Luigi Di Maio on Tuesday inked a maritime borders agreement delimiting an exclusive economic zone (EEZ) between the two countries....

220. EU top diplomat urges Turkey to respect Greece, Cyprus sovereignty

Josep Borrell, the EU’s foreign policy chief, on Tuesday urged Turkey to respect the sovereignty of Greece and Cyprus....

221. Ankara sparks renewed tensions with Athens over claim for 24 blocks

Ankara on Tuesday responded to a complaint from Athens concerning a map published in the Turkish government’s gazette outlining areas where Turkish Petroleum Corporation (TPAO) has applied for exploration licenses, including several within Greece’s continental shelf, by insisting that these areas are within the boundaries Turkey has submitted to the United Nations. ...

222. SpaceX delivers two NASA astronauts to ISS

Nearly 24 hours after launching from Florida, SpaceX’s Crew Dragon capsule delivered NASA astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley to the International Space Station on Sunday, marking the first US space capsule to do so with a crew since 2011...

223. Pandemic highlighted urgency of tackling climate challenges

While the coronavirus crisis has highlighted our vulnerabilities as a globally connected society, the recognition of the need to stabilize our climate and protect biodiversity preceded the current crisis by many years, Wolfgang Cramer, Scientific Co-Director of the Mediterranean Institute of Marine and Terrestrial Biodiversity and Ecology (IMBE), said Friday....

224. Greece condemns Turkey’s drilling intentions in Cyprus’ EEZ

Greece on Tuesday condemned Turkey’s announced intention to continue drilling inside Cyprus’ exclusive economic zone (EEZ), saying it ignores calls by the international community to respect international law....

225. ExxonMobil puts Cyprus plans on hold

ExxonMobil's crucial drilling plans to confirm a large gas deposit south of Cyprus have been put on hold, with a local media report citing delays due to the coronavirus pandemic...

226. Hydrocarbon exploration in Cyprus EEZ on track, minister says

A French-Italian consortium between oil giants Total and ENI will start drilling in Block 6 of Cyprus’ exclusive economic zone on schedule in April despite an “escalation” in tension from Turkey, Cypriot Energy Minister Giorgos Lakkotrypis has said....

227. Cavusoglu: Greece must be prepared to share in the East Med

Turkey is willing to reach a compromise with Greece as long as the latter is prepared to share in the Eastern Mediterranean, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said on Thursday....

228. Greek-US ties and the East Med

By Lieutenant General Thomas Trask On the occasion of his meeting last month with President Donald Trump in Washington, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis remarked how the US-Greece relationship “is the best it ever was. But it can become even better.”...

229. Cavusoglu slams Akinci after comment that Turkey-north annexation would be 'horrible'

“I’ve never worked with a more unreliable politician,” the Turkish Foreign Minister Melvut Cavusoglu said on Monday, referring to the Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci in response to an interview where Akinci said the prospect of Crimea-style annexation with Turkey was “horrible”....

230. Cooperation required to fully reap energy rewards

231. Nicosia to press on with energy plans

Republic of Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades says Nicosia’s energy plans are moving forward while criticizing Ankara for seeking preconditions for dialogue...

232. Flagship of French navy off the coast of Limassol

The Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier, the flagship of the French navy, sailed through Block 8 of Cyprus’ exclusive economic zone on Thursday, passing alongside the Turkish Yavuz drillship bringing rising tensions to the region....

233. Nicosia’s Yazuz suspicions point to online leak

Cypriot officials at the Department of Environment say an entire study, which was inadvertently posted online in 2017, might have given Ankara a leg-up in the search for gas off the coast of Limassol...

234. Egypt issues warning over Cyprus rights

Egypt has sent out a warning on Sunday about repercussions of any unilateral moves that could breach the rights of the Republic of Cyprus and pose threats to security and stability in the Middle East...

235. Nicosia and Athens condemn Ankara's illegal drilling

The Government of Cyprus publicly condemned Turkey’s newly planned illegal drilling within the Exclusive Economic Zone and continental shelf of the Republic of Cyprus, while the Greek Foreign Ministry strongly condemned Turkey΄s plans, stressing that their actions have neither legal effect nor create fait accompli....

236. Greece, Cyprus and Israel sign EastMed deal

Greece, Israel and Cyprus have signed a deal for an undersea pipeline designed to carry gas from offshore deposits in the southeastern Mediterranean to continental Europe...

237. Diplomatic hype over eastern Mediterranean

Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias attended Christmas Mass in Istanbul amid diplomatic tensions and power play between Athens and Ankara over gas exploration in the eastern Mediterranean...

238. Israel opposes Turkey-Libya deal

Israel opposes an accord signed last month between Libya and Turkey mapping out maritime boundaries in the eastern Mediterranean, but the deal was unlikely to lead to a conflict with Turkey, Israel's foreign minister says...

239. President talks Turkey-Libya deal with Sisi

President Anastasiades on Thursday had a phone conversation with his Egyptian counterpart Abdel Fattah el-Sisi with whom he discussed the recent Turkey-Libya memorandum of understanding on maritime boundaries, according to a written statement by Government Spokesman Kyriakos Kousios...

240. Lebanon says Greek vessel violated waters

Beirut is seeking answers through the United Nations following an alleged maritime violation by a Greek vessel in Lebanese territorial waters...