EU signals sanctions on Turkey over Cyprus drilling
The European Union will put on hold high-level talks
with Ankara and negotiations on an air transport agreement, as well as freeze
funding for Turkey next year, over “illegal” drilling for gas and oil off
Cyprus, according to a draft statement seen by Reuters.
The joint EU decision, which may still be changed,
will be discussed among national envoys in Brussels on Thursday with the aim of
adopting it when the bloc’s foreign ministers meet on Monday.
“In light of Turkey’s continued and new illegal
drilling activities, the (EU) decides to suspend negotiations on the
Comprehensive Air Transport Agreement and agrees not to hold further meetings
of the high-level dialogues for the time being,” the draft said.
“The Council endorses the (European) Commission’s
proposal to reduce the pre-accession assistance to Turkey for 2020 and invites
the European Investment Bank to review its lending activities in Turkey,
notably with regard to sovereign-backed lending,” it said.
It added that the EU would be ready to introduce
more restrictive measures against Turkey should it continue with the drilling.
