“Turkey will not back down in the slightest from its interests Wn hydrocarbons, neither in Cyprus, nor in the Aegean, nor in the Eastern Mediterranean,” Turkish Vice President Fuat Oktay said on Monday.
Speaking to the Turkish National Assembly on the 2019 budget, the Turkish vice president stated “We will certainly not allow any steps taken by Greece and the Greek Cypriot side, who are spoiled by the EU, against our country and the Turkish Cypriots.”
“In this matter, with great determination, along with our diplomatic efforts we also show our military strength and our energy policy,” Oktay said.
The vice president added that the oil and gas exploration in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea continues, with detailed seismic research being carried out by Turkish ships.
“After these seismic surveys, we use our national drilling rig, the Conqueror, which we received on October 30, 2017, for drilling in shallow and deep sea waters. After the Conqueror, our second drilling rig will be included in our register in early 2019,” he said.
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