European Union leaders will discuss Turkey‘s pursuit of natural gas exploration in contested waters in the eastern Mediterranean at their next summit in December, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said.
“Things haven’t developed the way we would have wished,” she told journalists following a meeting with EU leaders late on Thursday.
EU members Greece and Cyprus have been in a dispute with Turkey over Ankara’s provocative claims to hydrocarbon resources in the region.
Nicosia and Athens say Ankara is breaking international law by prospecting in Cypriot and Greek waters and have been urging the EU to reconsider its customs union to punish Turkey’s “imperial fantasies”.
Turkey claims it is within its rights in the energy-rich Mediterranean region, but concerns remain high over a potential military conflict between Greece and Turkey.
Both have been carrying out manoeuvres in the region with frigates and fighter jets.
