Crisis Deepens As Turkey Sends 4th Drilling Ship Into Disputed Waters Near Cyprus

Turkey Rejects EU Sanctions As "Not Serious" - Will Send 4th Drilling Ship Near Cyprus

Perhaps to be expected, Turkey's response to yesterday's EU announcement of impending economic and political sanctions to be brought against Ankara has been to swiftly and immediately double down on drilling, while dismissing the crisis as "not serious". 

Turkey has now sent its fourth oil and gas exploration ship to the eastern Mediterranean after European leaders condemned its drilling in EU-member Cyprus' territorial waters. Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu responded:

"Calling the EU's decision sanctions means taking it seriously. You shouldn't do that, the decision was made to satisfly Greek Cypriots. These things don't have any effect on us."

Turkey's Anadolu Agency reports, "Turkey will send its fourth ship to the Eastern Mediterranean region to continue its exploration and drilling, the country’s energy and natural resources minister said on Tuesday. It will join the Fatih and recently deployed Yavuz, and the seismic vessel the Barbaros Hayrettin Pasa which has conducted exploration in the Mediterranean since April 2017.

This was accompanied by FM Cavusoglu warning the EU that Turkey plans to increase its drilling and exploration activities in the East Mediterranean while "protecting the rights" of Turkish Cypriots. 

Ankara's position is that it has the same rights as the Greek Cypriot government to drill in the region, which Turkey interprets as including waters that expand 200 miles from EU member Cyrprus' coast, brazenly asserting ownership over a swathe of the Mediterranean that even cuts into Greece's exclusive economic zone.

On Monday, following a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels, the European Union announced that it will bring sanctions against Turkey for violating Cyprus' waters, which has also involved Turkey sending drones, F-16 fighters, and warships to escort the few drilling ships it's already deployed off Cyprus. 

Austrian Federal Minister for Europe, Integration and Foreign Affairs Alexander Schallenberg also announced Monday the extent of the planned sanctions:

"Today, we will adopt a number of measures against Turkey — less money, fewer loans through the European Investment Bank, freeze of aviation agreement talks. Naturally, other sanctions are possible."

"We are fully behind Cyprus," the EU official added while addressing the crisis.

Meanwhile, there are unverified reports that Turkey has struck major gas reserves, which if confirmed will only intensify the crisis. Per Turkey's Ahval news: 

Turkey’s drill ship “Fatih” has found its first gas reserves in the potentially hydrocarbon rich area around the island of Cyprus, Turkish Cypriot newspaper Kıbrıs Postası reported on Monday. The Fatih is the first Turkish surveying vessel to begin drilling in the seas around the island. The second, “Yavuz”, began drilling operations in July.

A Greek Cypriot newspaper, Fileleftheros, reported earlier this week that the Fatih had struck gas reserves of up to 170 billion cubic metres in the waters off Paphos in Greek Cypriot-controlled southwest Cyprus. Kıbrıs Postası quoted a diplomatic source as saying the story was credible.