IKV Chairman Ayhan Zeytinoğlu issued a press statement on the European Parliament (EP) resolution regarding the situation in the Eastern Mediterranean adopted at the plenary session on 17 September 2020. He stated the following:

“The EP has adopted a resolution supporting the claims of Greece and the Greek Cypriot Administration ahead of the Special European Council meeting on the Eastern Mediterranean set to convene on 24-25 September 2020. We note with regret the ongoing approach to lend unconditional support to the maximalist maritime jurisdiction area claims by Greece and the Greek Cypriot Administration. Branding the activities carried out by Turkey in its continental shelf registered with the UN as ‘illegal’, the resolution condemns these on the grounds that they violate the so-called sovereign rights of Greece and the Greek Cypriot Administration. The resolution calls on Turkey to respect the sovereign rights of the two, and end its exploration and drilling activities. Moreover, it calls on the Council to stand ready to develop a list of targeted and sectoral restrictive measures in case of lack of progress. In addition, the resolution contains extremely biased and unacceptable assessments concerning Turkey's foreign policy towards Syria and Libya.

The resolution also expresses deep concern about the current state of Turkey-EU relations particularly regarding the areas of  human rights, democracy and the rule of law. However, it fails to note that the opening of chapters 23 and 24, which would serve as a roadmap for addressing the shortcomings in these areas, is rendered impossible due to the veto of the Greek Cypriot Administration.”

IKV Chairman Zeytinoğlu concluded his remarks as follows:

“The emphasis on dialogue, diplomacy, negotiations in a spirit of goodwill and international law in finding a sustainable solution to disputes, support for the mediation efforts by High Representative Borrell, the German EU Presidency and NATO, the call on the Commission and the Member States to pursue a broad dialogue with Turkey as well as a comprehensive strategic security architecture and energy cooperation in the Mediterranean are positive aspects to note. But, unfortunately these aspects are overshowed by the unfair stance portrayed throughout the resolution.

As is known, the EP resolution is not binding. Sadly, the biased and unfair political messages in the resolution adopted by the EP, which is the only EU body whose members are directly elected by the peoples of Europe, neither contribute to bringing Turkey and the EU closer together nor to defusing the tension in the region. On the contrary, it harms the EP’s reputation in Turkey. We invite the EP to adopt a wiser and a more constructive approach ahead of the upcoming European Council meeting in order to contribute to defusing the tension in the region and to facilitate a solution through dialogue and diplomacy as underscored in the resolution.”