Foreign Ministry spokesperson Konstantinos Koutras stated the following in response to journalists’ questions regarding a Turkish Foreign Ministry announcement on the exploitation of the EEZ and continental shelf of the Republic of Cyprus:
“Turkey is aware, and at any rate ought to be aware, that respect for the sovereignty and sovereign rights of the Republic of Cyprus in the EEZ and the continental shelf of the Republic of Cyprus – that is, of a member state of the United Nations and the European Union – is an obligation for the whole of the international community. Cyprus cannot bear any further violation of international law. Turkey’s European course and the course of the negotiations in Cyprus hinge on Turkey’s conduct.”
October 5, 2014