Turkish FM says Greek Cyprus must rely on Turkey to sell gas

The Greek Cypriot administration will have to rely on Turkey to export the natural gas it hopes to extract from eastern Mediterranean fields, Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu said in remarks published on Thursday.

The foreign minister also reiterated that if Greek Cyprus insists on using hydrocarbon reserves off the island to overcome its debt crisis without the consent of the Turkish Cypriots, Turkey is ready to discuss a two-state solution on the island in order to claim the rights of Turkish Cypriots to the reserves.

“There is nowhere that the gas could go except Turkey,” Davutoğlu told journalists on his plane en route to Tbilisi. He said Turkey itself needs energy and would also be the best transit option if Greek Cyprus opts for exporting the gas to Europe. “Which country [in the region] is energy-hungry? If they decide to sell it to Europe, where will it go through? An undersea pipeline through Crete to Greece may be considered but there are big fault lines in that terrain; it is not feasible,” he said. “So, they are obligated [to cooperate with Turkey.]”