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661. Amid tensions with Turkey, Greece in joint manoeuvres with France

Amid ongoing tensions with Turkey over disputed waters in the eastern Mediterranean, the French military conducted training exercises with Greek forces on Thursday off the southern island of Crete, including in the maritime area reserved by Turkey’s Navtex earlier this month for seismic exploration....

662. 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...

663. Borrell calls extraordinary Foreign Affairs Council meeting

European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell has called an extraordinary Foreign Affairs Council meeting Friday afternoon....

664. 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....

665. Leaders of Cyprus, Greece talk strategy

Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades was briefed on Tuesday by the Greek Premier Kyriakos Mitsotakis on the situation in Greece’s continental shelf and exclusive economic zone, where Turkey’s seismic exploration vessel is currently stationed, with the two leaders agreeing on coordinated action....

666. Turkey says it will license new Mediterranean areas this month

Turkey will issue seismic exploration and drilling licenses in new areas of the eastern Mediterranean by the end of August and continue its operations in the region, Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said on Tuesday, amid tensions with Greece....

667. Turkey issues yet another Navtex as vessel moves into Greek EEZ

Turkey has responded to a Greek navigational telex (Navtex) issued earlier Monday with an advisory saying that three Turkish research vessels are “conducting seismic survey in Turkey’s continental shelf… in accordance with international law.”...

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

669. North commemorates Tylliria bombing

Busloads of Turkish Cypriots crossed into Cyprus’ “other ghost town” on Saturday to commemorate Turkish bombing in Tylliria during intercommunal clashes on the island in 1964, but the gathering was not without political controversy...

670. Turkey resumes drilling in eastern Mediterranean, Erdogan says

President Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday that Turkey had resumed energy exploration work in the eastern Mediterranean as Greece had not kept its promises regarding such activities in the region. ...

671. Greek PM proposes fresh talks with Turkey on maritime zones, or World Court

Greece’s Prime Minister reiterated a call for bilateral talks with Turkey on the delimitation of maritime zones in the Aegean and the Eastern Mediterranean, adding that if these don’t work, they should refer the issue to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague....

672. Cyprus calls for EU task force on island

The European Union must do more to fill a power vacuum in the eastern Mediterranean brought on by a perceived US disengagement from the region, and Cyprus is ready to host an EU task force to achieve that goal, the island nation's foreign minister said Wednesday...

673. Greek FM says Athens got Nicosia’s back

Nicosia and Athens are seeking ways to further oppose Turkey’s moves in the eastern Mediterranean, after Ankara signaled it was ready for dialogue but also sent a seismic research vessel in Cypriot waters...

674. Athens open to talks but not so fast

Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias has welcomed a recent move from Turkey towards de-escalation in the region, saying Athens was open to dialogue but not on all things...

675. UNFICYP renewal invokes reactions

The United Nations Security Council unanimously adopted a new resolution on Tuesday, providing for the renewal of the mandate for the UN Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus for another six months while also invoking mixed reactions...

676. Ankara stands down pending dialogue

Turkey could pause energy-exploration operations in the eastern Mediterranean Sea for a while pending talks with Greece, presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalin said on Tuesday...

677. NAVTEX warnings muddy the waters off Cyprus

Rival navigational warnings and conflicting information about naval exercises in the eastern Mediterranean dominated headlines over the weekend, with Germany appearing to be behind a last-ditch effort to buy time and de-escalate tensions between Greece and Turkey...

678. Borrell, Cavusoglu agree on need to de-escalate EastMed tension

EU’s foreign policy chief Josep Borrell held a telephone conversation on Thursday with the Turkish Foreign Minister Melvut Cavusoglu, with the two agreeing on the need to de-escalate tensions in the Eastern Mediterranean. ...

679. Stern warning issued to Turkish vessel

Amid heightened tensions, Greek military sources have told Kathimerini that if cables of the Turkish Oruc Reis seismic research vessel touch the Greek continental shelf, Turkey will have the “complete and exclusive” responsibility for what will follow....

680. Greece ‘overreacted’ to Turkish research mission, Erdogan spokesman says

Ibrahim Kalin, spokesman of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, said Thursday that Greece had “overreacted” to plans by Turkey to proceed with an oil-and-gas research mission south of Greek islands in the Eastern Mediterranean....

681. Cypriot president in Paris for talks

Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades is set to meet French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris on Thursday, as the two leaders get together amid heightened rhetoric over the eastern Mediterranean...

682. Armed Forces source: ‘Situation unchanged’ near Kastellorizo

The situation “remain unchanged” in the sea area near the Greek island of Kastellorizo on Wednesday for which Turkey issued a Navtex on Tuesday for seismic activities in an area of sea between Cyprus and Crete, according to a source from the Hellenic National Defense General Staff (GEETHA)....

683. 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....

684. Cyprus among five countries that present UNSG with note verbale on Tukey-Libya MoU

Cyprus, Bahrain, Egypt, Greece and Saudi Arabia have presented a note verbale to the UN Secretary General, Antonio Guterrres, outlining the reasons why the Memorandum of Understanding signed between the Government of the Republic of Turkey and the Government of National Accord of Libya on the delimitation of maritime jurisdiction areas in the Mediterranean in Istanbul on 27 November 2019 should not be registered by the UN Secretariat in the list of international treaties....

685. Anastasiades lauds France as a pillar of stability in EastMed region

In a period of immense challenges and illegal actions, the presence of the French naval force in the broader geographical region tangibly proves the readiness and determination of France to act as a pillar of stability in the region, while it sends a clear message to those who aim at escalating tensions by acting in an unacceptable way, Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades said Monday....

686. EU to discuss new names for further sanctions against Turkey

EU Foreign Ministers agreed at the Foreign Affairs Council held Monday in Brussels that the Working Party of Foreign Relations Counsellors (RELEX) that convenes on Thursday should discuss imposing further sanctions against Turkey in view of its provocations in the Cyprus EEZ....

687. UNSG report on his good offices in Cyprus obtained by Kathimerini Cyprus

The 39-page advance copy of the Report of the UN Secretary-General on his mission of good offices in Cyprus was obtained by Kathimerini Cyprus....

688. Turkish court rules to let Hagia Sophia return as mosque

689. 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....

690. 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...