Troubled Water in the Eastern Mediterranean. Turkey Challenges Greece and Cyprus Regarding Energy Resources

The conflict between Turkey on the one hand and Greece and Cyprus on the other was exacerbated when Turkey and Libya reached an agreement on the delimitation of maritime zones to explore and exploit energy resources in late 2019. The countries were on the brink of military confrontation. This was th...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Axt Heinz-Jürgen
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: De Gruyter 2021-05-01
Series:Comparative Southeast European Studies
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1515/soeu-2021-2006
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1850283822750367744
author Axt Heinz-Jürgen
author_facet Axt Heinz-Jürgen
author_sort Axt Heinz-Jürgen
collection DOAJ
description The conflict between Turkey on the one hand and Greece and Cyprus on the other was exacerbated when Turkey and Libya reached an agreement on the delimitation of maritime zones to explore and exploit energy resources in late 2019. The countries were on the brink of military confrontation. This was the latest climax of a longer period of conflict and mistrust, during which negative perceptions became more entrenched on all sides. Energy is globally high in demand but exploiting resources in the Mediterranean Sea at competitive prices is difficult. The international community has developed an ambitious Law of the Sea, but its interpretation is controversial. Compromises are needed to de-escalate. What might serve as a ‘bridge over troubled waters’ in the Eastern Mediterranean? The author comments on the available options.
format Article
id doaj-art-715a4ebc760642c2aa98d00ec3c5e9b3
institution OA Journals
issn 2701-8199
2701-8202
language English
publishDate 2021-05-01
publisher De Gruyter
record_format Article
series Comparative Southeast European Studies
spelling doaj-art-715a4ebc760642c2aa98d00ec3c5e9b32025-08-20T01:47:42ZengDe GruyterComparative Southeast European Studies2701-81992701-82022021-05-0169113315210.1515/soeu-2021-2006Troubled Water in the Eastern Mediterranean. Turkey Challenges Greece and Cyprus Regarding Energy ResourcesAxt Heinz-Jürgen0Mülheim an der Ruhr, GermanyThe conflict between Turkey on the one hand and Greece and Cyprus on the other was exacerbated when Turkey and Libya reached an agreement on the delimitation of maritime zones to explore and exploit energy resources in late 2019. The countries were on the brink of military confrontation. This was the latest climax of a longer period of conflict and mistrust, during which negative perceptions became more entrenched on all sides. Energy is globally high in demand but exploiting resources in the Mediterranean Sea at competitive prices is difficult. The international community has developed an ambitious Law of the Sea, but its interpretation is controversial. Compromises are needed to de-escalate. What might serve as a ‘bridge over troubled waters’ in the Eastern Mediterranean? The author comments on the available options.https://doi.org/10.1515/soeu-2021-2006turkeygreeceenergy resourcesconflictinternational law
spellingShingle Axt Heinz-Jürgen
Troubled Water in the Eastern Mediterranean. Turkey Challenges Greece and Cyprus Regarding Energy Resources
Comparative Southeast European Studies
turkey
greece
energy resources
conflict
international law
title Troubled Water in the Eastern Mediterranean. Turkey Challenges Greece and Cyprus Regarding Energy Resources
title_full Troubled Water in the Eastern Mediterranean. Turkey Challenges Greece and Cyprus Regarding Energy Resources
title_fullStr Troubled Water in the Eastern Mediterranean. Turkey Challenges Greece and Cyprus Regarding Energy Resources
title_full_unstemmed Troubled Water in the Eastern Mediterranean. Turkey Challenges Greece and Cyprus Regarding Energy Resources
title_short Troubled Water in the Eastern Mediterranean. Turkey Challenges Greece and Cyprus Regarding Energy Resources
title_sort troubled water in the eastern mediterranean turkey challenges greece and cyprus regarding energy resources
topic turkey
greece
energy resources
conflict
international law
url https://doi.org/10.1515/soeu-2021-2006
work_keys_str_mv AT axtheinzjurgen troubledwaterintheeasternmediterraneanturkeychallengesgreeceandcyprusregardingenergyresources