The United States on Tuesday criticized Turkey's resumption of exploration operations in the eastern Mediterranean after sending the Aruj Reis vessel, at a time when Ankara called on the European Union to abandon "double standards."
In a statement, a spokeswoman for the US State Department, Morgan Ortagus, denounced Turkey's renewal of the survey operations in the areas over which Greece imposes its jurisdiction in the eastern Mediterranean, considering the unilateral Turkish declaration stoking tensions in the region, and that it is deliberately holding the resumption of exploratory talks between Greece and Turkey.
And Ankara announced yesterday that the Turkish survey vessel Aruj Reyes has resumed gas exploration in the eastern Mediterranean, and its mission will continue for 10 days.
The Turkish Energy Minister said that his country will continue to protect its rights and create any potential resources in the region.
The US State Department called on Ankara to end what it described as a provocation and to immediately start exploratory talks with Athens, stressing that coercion, threats, intimidation and military activity will not solve tensions, and that unilateral measures cannot build confidence and will not produce durable solutions.
France also expressed its concern after the ship set out on its journey, and the Greek Foreign Ministry described the step as a "major escalation" and a "direct threat to security in the region."
Meanwhile, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas began a visit to Greece and Cyprus to discuss tension in the eastern Mediterranean.
The German Foreign Ministry said that Maas will pledge to Greece and Cyprus the full solidarity of Germany and the European Union.
Berlin called on all parties to act on the basis of good neighborliness, adding that Turkey would remain a neighbor to Greece and Cyprus.
The German Foreign Ministry also appealed to Turkey not to take unilateral steps that would obstruct the dialogue with Greece.
Maas had called on Turkey to stop what he described as a provocation in the gas dispute in the eastern Mediterranean.
For his part, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu called in a press conference with his Swedish counterpart, the European Union to abandon what he called double standards that it uses in many issues, including the Eastern Mediterranean, and the support it provides to Greece only because it is a member of it.
On the other hand, Greece announced that it would not participate in exploratory talks with Turkey regarding de-escalation in the eastern Mediterranean, if the Turkish exploration ship remained in what it said was the waters of the continental shelf of the country.
The Greek Foreign Ministry had described Turkey's resumption of search and exploration activities in the eastern Mediterranean as illegal, and as a dangerous escalation and a threat to peace in the region.
The Greek Foreign Ministry called on Ankara to end the survey and exploration work immediately.
Tension subsided after Turkey withdrew the ship and agreed to hold preliminary talks with Greece, but the Turkish Navy said that the Aruj Reis ship would resume its activities in the region, angering Greece, which refused to hold talks before withdrawing the ship.