Cyprus on Friday issued a navigational telex reserving parts of blocks 2 and 3 of its Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) for naval exercises. The coordinators of the naval exercises will use real fire from July 1 to July 10.
The Navtex comes in response to Turkey’s continuous violations of Cyprus‘ EEZ and threats that Turkish drillship Yavuz will start exploring for hydrocarbons in the area.
The Cypriot ships will use real fire and warn that the particular marine area will be “very dangerous for navigation”. According to analysts, the aim is to block Yavuz, thus sending a message to Ankara.
The Yavuz is expected to anchor in the area and prepare for drilling, according to Turkish Energy Minister Fatih Donmez. In February 2018, Turkish ships stopped Italian company Eni from drilling in block 3.
Nicosia is asking for the participation of French energy company Total in blocks that have already been licensed to Italy’s Eni, as well as a consortium of the Italian company and South Korea’s KOGAS.
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