7/10/19
Brussels - EU diplomats have discussed which sanctions to slap on Turkey over gas drilling in Cypriot waters, amid Ankara's ongoing mockery of Europe. Potential measures include suspending EU-Turkey political talks and technical talks on issues such as energy and transport, as well as similar bilateral talks between EU capitals and Ankara. They also include cuts in EU aid to for Turkish reforms and curtailing European Investment Bank (EIB) lending. "The cuts in pre-accession funds were already agreed last year, so this would just be a symbolic confirmation of that," an EU diplomat told EUobserver on Wednesday (10 July), referring to a previous decision to hold back €147m due to Turkey's human rights abuses. The freeze on EIB loans, which were worth €386m last year, could also "easily be done", the EU contact said. But suspension of talks was a more delicate issue. "We have to send the appropriate political message, while keeping some channels of communication open," the diplomat noted. "We need to continue dialogue on certain issues which are important to us," the source added, referring to an old EU-Turkey deal to hold back refugees coming from Syria to Greece. But for his part, EU Council president Donald Tusk indicated that sanctions were a done deal. "Despite our best intentions to keep good neighbourly relations with Turkey, its continued escalation and challenge to the sovereignty of our member state Cyprus will inevitably lead the EU to respond in full solidarity," he said on Wednesday.
The dispute arose after two Turkish ships began drilling for gas in waters claimed both by Cyprus and by the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, which broke away in the 1970s, but which is recognized by Turkey only. The row has also seen Egypt, Israel, and the US urge Turkey to stop, in a regional energy axis which aims to build a new gas pipeline to the EU, the EastMed pipeline, weakening Turkey and Russia's grip on energy supplies to south-east Europe.
The gas dispute comes after Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan already caused a rift with the EU by jailing and torturing political opponents in the wake of a failed coup. His one-man rule has also seen him put relatives in charge of the finance ministry and sack his central bank chief on a whim, creating a crisis of confidence in the Turkish economy. He has cozied up to Moscow by buying anti-aircraft systems from Russia instead of the US, but that has prompted threats of American sanctions which could cause further financial pain. Turkish-occupied northern Cyprus hosts tens of thousands of Turkish soldiers and Ankara said it might send warships to escort its gas-drilling vessels. "Cyprus is unhappy and has the full solidarity of member states, but they're working with the EU on a response in purely civilian terms," the EU source said.