1009
2011
[SEE: Does Turkey Really Intend to Protect Gaza Cargoes and to Stop Cyprus Gas Exploration?]
By George Psyllides
Cyprus mail
The National Guard's new vice commander Major General Andreas Petrides
PRESIDENT Demetris Christofias called yesterday for the armed forces to show "vigilance and readiness" in the face of Turkish threats over the island's intention to exploit potential hydrocarbon reserves in its exclusive economic zone (EEZ), as the EU told Turkey for the second time not to issue threats against Cyprus.
Greece also joined in, warning that any attack on Cyprus would constitute an attack on Greece.
"Turkish arrogance and the threats that are launched in a bid to intimidate (and) prevent Cyprus from exploiting its EEZ, call for vigilance and readiness," Christofias said, during the confirmation of the National Guard's new vice commander Major General Andreas Petrides.
Christofias said the armed forces are called on to deliver their top mission to safeguard the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the semi-occupied country, as well as the people's freedom and dignity.
"Times are difficult, but states and societies are being tested during tough times," the president said.
For the second day running, the EU told Turkey to stop issuing threats against Cyprus.
"The EU urges Turkey to refrain from any kinds of threats, sources of friction that could negatively affect good neighbourly relations and the peaceful settlement of border disputes," a spokeswoman for the EU's foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton told reporters.
Maja Kocijancic said Turkey should work towards a "comprehensive" solution to a conflict between Turkey and EU member Cyprus over the occupied north.
Turkey has raised tension in the area, combining its spat with Israel over the death of nine Turkish activists killed in international waters last year with Cypriot and Israeli plans to explore for oil and gas in their respective EEZ's. Exploratory drilling is due to begin within weeks.
Turkey said it plans to beef up navy patrols in the region and secure free navigation of the seas, but it is believed that it really wants to build up a naval presence between Cyprus and Israel to scare investors away from the gas fields there.
Turkey has been irked by Cypriot-Israeli energy deals, and the tensions with Israel could enable Ankara to send a message without making explicit threats.
"Turkey's emphasis on freedom of navigation is also connected to the assessment that in the eastern Mediterranean there are natural gas deposits beyond what have already been discovered," Gallia Lindenstrauss of the Institute for National Security Studies at Tel Aviv University, told Reuters.
Greece meanwhile said yesterday that an attack on Cyprus would mean an attack on Greece.
"Cyprus is an independent member of the UN and has the right to independently determine its interests, alone or in cooperation with other countries," vice president of the Greek government Thodoros Pangalos said.
Government spokesman Stefanos Stefanou said the government is working in different directions regarding Turkey, urging the neighbouring country to operate in the framework of international law as Cyprus does "to secure peace and normalcy in the region".