(Commonwealth_Europe) The Turkish Cypriot community has raised formal objections to the Republic of Cyprus’s planned oil and gas exploration activities in its Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), a move that threatens to further escalate tensions on the divided island. In a letter sent to the United Nations Secretary-General and the UN Security Council, Turkey’s Permanent Representative, Ambassador Ahmet Yildiz, conveyed the Turkish Cypriots’ strong dissatisfaction with the Republic of Cyprus’s intention to conduct drilling operations between December 24, 2024, and February 24, 2025.
The protest, which was sent on behalf of the leadership of Turkish Cyprus, says that the planned drilling activities are illegal and violate the rights of Turkish Cyprus residents. It also says that the Republic of Cyprus’s decisions about the maritime border and its agreements with foreign energy companies like ExxonMobil and Qatar Energy are also illegal. According to the Turkish Cypriot community, these actions overlook their rightful claims to the island’s natural resources, a situation that has been a point of contention since Cyprus’s division in 1963.
Mehmet Dana, a spokesperson for the Turkish Cypriot leadership, further articulated their position by emphasizing that the Greek Cypriot administration lacks the legal authority to represent the entire island. He pointed to the longstanding political and territorial division of Cyprus, which has left the Turkish Cypriot community in the north and the Greek Cypriot community in the south, as the root cause of the issue. The Turkish Cypriots assert that the Greek Cypriot government, recognized internationally as the sole representative of the Republic of Cyprus, cannot act on behalf of the entire island, as they do not represent the interests of the Turkish Cypriot community.
The Turkish Cypriot leadership has also accused the Greek Cypriot administration of disregarding peaceful dialogue and cooperation opportunities. They argue that efforts to resolve the conflict through diplomatic means have been repeatedly ignored by the Greek Cypriot side, which they accuse of acting unilaterally in the pursuit of its economic interests. This ongoing exclusion of the Turkish Cypriot community from discussions and decisions regarding Cyprus’s natural resources has only exacerbated the sense of injustice and distrust between the two sides.
In light of the perceived violation of their rights, the Turkish Cypriot leadership has declared its intention to implement countermeasures. While the details are unknown, these measures are expected to respond to planned drilling. The exact nature of these countermeasures remains uncertain, but it is clear that the Turkish Cypriot leadership is determined to safeguard its position on the issue.
This latest development is part of a broader and long-standing dispute over the exploitation of Cyprus’s hydrocarbon resources. Since the discovery of significant offshore gas fields in the Mediterranean, Cyprus’s hydrocarbon exploration activities have become a focal point of tensions between the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot communities. The division of the island following the intercommunal violence of 1963 and the Turkish invasion of 1974 has created a complex and unresolved political landscape, where both communities claim equal rights to the island’s resources.
The involvement of external actors further complicates the situation. The Republic of Cyprus has signed agreements with international companies, including ExxonMobil and Qatar Energy, to conduct drilling operations in the waters off its southern coast. However, Turkey and the Turkish Cypriots argue that these activities violate the rights of the Turkish Cypriot community, which they claim should have a say in how the island’s natural resources are used. Turkey says it won’t allow Cyprus’s resources to be exploited without Turkish Cypriot consent.
The Turkish Cypriot protest and the threat of countermeasures underscore the deepening divide between the two communities and the challenges to resolving the broader Cyprus conflict. In the past few years, diplomatic efforts to bring the Greek and Turkish sides of Cyprus closer together have mostly stopped. The issue of hydrocarbon exploration has also become a flashpoint in the Turkish Cypriot community’s ongoing fight. As the drilling activities approach, the potential for further escalation remains high, and the international community may once again be called upon to mediate a solution to this long-standing dispute.