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2251. Greece to speed up creation of migrant holding centers to ease tension

Greece plans to accelerate the creation of detention centers on its outlying islands in the Aegean Sea after a backlash against overcrowded camps by some migrants and nearby residents....

2252. 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”....

2253. Cooperation required to fully reap energy rewards

2254. House President praises Australia’s principled stance over Cyprus

Australia is a friendly country that supports Cyprus and retains a principled stance vis-à-vis the Cyprus problem, said the President of the House of Representatives, Demetris Syllouris, who is paying an official visit to the country as head of an inter-party delegation....

2255. 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...

2256. Turkish clothes makers see orders shifting from coronavirus-hit China

Several fashion retailers that manufacture clothing in coronavirus-hit China are in talks with Turkish firms about shifting production to Turkey, two sector officials told Reuters, with one predicting new orders worth up to $2 billion....

2257. Cavusoglu: Turkey is prepared to cooperate with all apart from G/C

Turkey is prepared to cooperate with everyone apart from the Republic of Cyprus in the Eastern Mediterranean, including Greece, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said....

2258. Defence Minister requests US muscle against Turkey

Foreign Minister Nicos Christodoulides asked senior US energy official Francis Fannon for a substantial US contribution to efforts seeking to end Turkish activities in the Cyprus exclusive economic zone....

2259. Greek Defence minister denies Erdogan's phone talk claims on Imia

Greek Defence Minister Nikos Panagiotopoulos rejected on Thursday claims by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan that he sent a message to Greece through Defence Minister Hulusi Akar not to make any “move” over the eastern Aegean islets of Imia, for which the two countries were brought to the brink of war twenty-four years ago....

2260. 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....

2261. Three killed in Istanbul plane crash

A Pegasus Airlines plane flying into Istanbul’s Sabiha Gokcen airport skidded off the end of a wet runway and broke into three pieces after landing on Wednesday, killing three people and injuring 179...

2262. Greek, Turkish defense ministers hold telephone conversation ahead of NATO meeting

Greek Defense Minister Nikos Panagiotopoulos and his Turkish counterpart Hulusi Akar held a telephone conversation Wednesday ahead of the meeting of NATO ministers of defense in Brussels February 12-13, Kathimerini reports....

2263. French aircraft carrier in Cyprus Block 8

Amid rising tensions in the East Mediterranean, the flagship of the French Navy, aircraft carrier Charles De Gaulle, remains in Block 8 of Cyprus’ exclusive economic zone, bearing a small fleet of Rafale fighter jets, helicopters, other aircraft and drones....

2264. Turkey deploys extremists to Libya, local militias say

Syrian militants affiliated with groups such as al-Qaida and the Islamic State group are currently being sent by Turkey to fight on behalf of the UN-supported government in Libya, according to two Libyan militia leaders and a Syrian war monitor....

2265. Dendias: Athens, Rome view Turkey-Libya MoU as 'illegal, groundless'

After a meeting on Tuesday with Italian Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio, Greek counterpart Nikos Dendias said on Tuesday that Athens and Rome both view the memorandum of understanding between Turkey and the Tripoli-based government of Libya on maritime borders as “illegal and groundless”....

2266. EU diplomats to impose sanctions on two Turks over Cyprus EEZ drilling

Cyprus, Turkey, EU, drilling, EEZ, sanctions...

2267. Greece not trying to create ‘anti-Turkish front,’ Greek FM says

Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias says Greece is not trying to drum up opposition against Turkey but rather support for what is reasonable and would enable more cooperation in the Mediterranean....

2268. The beginning of Brexit

At the stroke of midnight in Brussels, Britain will officially leave the European Union, setting off negotiations in which London will seek to gain as many benefits as it can from the Union. At the same time, it will work toward bilateral agreements with EU member-states and countries outside the bloc....

2269. Cyprus rejects Ankara call for a stop to drilling

Nicosia on Thursday rejected a call by Ankara for a halt to drilling activities off the island's south as a precondition for it to stop its own activities off the divided island. ...

2270. Foreign Minister on official visit to Beirut

Foreign Minister Nikos Christodoulides travels to Beirut on Friday on an official visit. He is the first foreign official to visit Lebanon after the new government of Lebanon assumed duties....

2271. Aksoy: Turkey will continue protecting T/C rights

Turkey’s ongoing survey and drilling activities off Cyprus aim at protecting the rights of Turkish Cypriots, a foreign ministry spokesman said Thursday, adding that “until these rights are guaranteed, Turkish Petroleum will continue to operate” in the areas licensed by the breakaway state....

2272. EU's Turkey rapporteur says Ankara-Tripoli maritime deal has no legal bearing

A deal between Ankara and Libya’s Tripoli-based government on maritime borders does not have any legal bearing for other countries, European Parliament rapporteur on Turkey, Nacho Sanchez Amor, told state-run news agency ANA-MPA on Thursday....

2273. Cyprus ready for five-party meeting, Anastasiades tells Lute

Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades shared a phone call on Wednesday with UN special envoy Jane Holl Lute, expressing his readiness to take part in an informal five-party conference with the aim of reaching an agreement on the terms of reference that would allow the resumption of peace talks....

2274. Greece wants floating fence to keep migrants out

Greece wants to install a floating barrier in the Aegean Sea to deter migrants arriving at its islands’ shores through Turkey, government officials said on Thursday....

2275. Little US-Turkish progress solving defenses row, Erdogan says

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Wednesday Washington and Ankara had done little to solve a row over Turkey’s purchase of Russian defenses and its procurement of US fighter jets despite a November agreement, according to broadcaster NTV....

2276. Mitsotakis calls for greater European solidarity on Turkey, migration

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has called for greater European solidarity in dealing with Turkish provocations against Greek sovereignty and the immigration crisis....

2277. UNFICYP draft under ‘silence procedure’

A resolution renewing the mandate of the United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus for an additional six months is under the “silence procedure” and it is expected to be adopted on Thursday if no member breaks the silence...

2278. Foreign Minister in Rome for working visit

Cyprus’ Minister of Foreign Affairs Nicos Christodoulides is travelling to Rome, where on Wednesday he will hold a working visit at the invitation of his Italian counterpart, Luigi Di Maio, during which the latest developments in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Middle East, in the light of Turkey’s aggressive activities in the marine zones of the Republic of Cyprus and Libya, will be discussed....

2279. Tsipras versus the US and Trump's intervention

Opposition leader Alexis Tsipras’ critical stance toward the extension of the defense cooperation agreement between Greece and the United States is a sign of inconsistency, as he is refusing to vote in favor of an agreement that he is effectively responsible for after negotiating its parameters when he was prime minister....

2280. Greece, Cyprus talk defence cooperation

Cooperation on defence and security is main discussion topic between Defence Minister Savvas Angelides and his Greek counterpart, Nicos Panayiotopoulos, in the framework of the 6th Greece-Cyprus Intergovernmental Defence Council taking place in Athens....