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The assessment that the US does not challenge the sovereign rights of the Republic of Cyprus and the agreements concluded by Nicosia with neighbouring states to define its maritime borders,[/B] expressed former Foreign Minister Nikos Christodoulides noting that the Americans did not question the route of the East Med pipeline.
He also said that the reasons for their approach to the non paper were mainly related to environmental reasons and issues of economic sustainability.
In his introduction during a lecture on "The East Med Pipeline. Myth or Reality" held last night at the House of Arts and Letters in Larnaca, the former Foreign Minister referred to the actions of "the Republic of Cyprus in 2003, 2007 and 2010 to proceed in defining its maritime borders with Egypt, Lebanon and Israel on the basis of international law and specifically the 1982 Convention on the Law of the Sea".
He added that "through these agreements, political and economic certainty was ensured with regard to the Exclusive Economic Zones in the Eastern Mediterranean, which was decisive in the interest of energy giants in the EEZs of Israel, Egypt, Cyprus and Lebanon."
Mr. Christodoulides referred to the actions of Turkey which in fact attempted through illegal actions to challenge these agreements, noting that "the reaction of the European Union by taking legal and political measures against Turkey, despite the fact that these measures were not as strong as we would have liked, confirmed the illegality of Turkish claims in the Eastern Mediterranean, and the fact that they lack any legal basis."
The same, he continued, "applies to the reaction of Egypt as well as other states in the region, which basically did not respond to Turkey's calls to define an EEZ between them on the basis of the Turkish vision."
Regarding the importance of the Eastern Mediterranean as a potential alternative energy corridor for Europe, the former Foreign Minister referred to developments in Ukraine and how they relate to the energy situation in Europe, and noted that "the countries of Europe are largely dependent, energy-wise, on the Russian Federation.
The Eastern Mediterranean region, he said, "for both Europe and the US is a potentially credible alternative energy prospect in which both Brussels and Washington are investing heavily."[/B]
The Eastern Mediterranean region is a potentially credible alternative energy prospect in which both Brussels and Washington are investing heavily. It is no coincidence that international energy giants have invested in the region, claiming blocks in the EEZ of countries in the region."
According to Christodoulides, "the Eastern Mediterranean can be developed as an alternative energy corridor for Europe, thus offering a response to Europe's current dependence on natural gas from Russia."
The former Foreign Minister also said that "very rightly, the previous governments of Glafkos Clerides, Tassos Papadopoulos and Demetris Christofias proceeded to agree on our maritime borders with neighbouring states, defining Cyprus' EEZ with these states. The responsibility of the present administration, and in this direction it moved, was to mature politically, through the conclusion of relevant inter-state agreements, all possible feasible options for the exploitation of the natural gas of the region in cooperation with the neighbouring states," he said.
He explained that one option "is the creation of a gas pipeline from Israel, to Cyprus and Greece to Europe, an option which was politically confirmed with the signing of the Interstate Agreement on the East Med pipeline. It was in this very context that the agreement for the construction of the East Med pipeline was signed."
Nikos Christodoulides also noted that "which option will be followed will depend on factors related to economic viability issues, environmental data, results of the relevant drilling and of course factors related to the political data in the region."
Source: CNA
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