Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias will visit Cyprus on Tuesday to coordinate with Nicosia and Athens on the escalation of tensions in the Eastern Mediterranean region.

According to the official report, he will meet with President Nicos Anastasiades before holding talks with his counterpart Nikos Christodoulides.

The agenda of the talks focuses on the recent developments in the Eastern Mediterranean and the escalation of illegal Turkish actions in the region.

In addition, the topics of Greek-Cypriot cooperation both at bilateral and European level, in the context of the trilateral alliance in the region, will be discussed at the meeting.

The Nicosia Foreign Ministry said in a press release that “the two ministers will have a one-to-one meeting, followed by consultations in the presence of officials from both countries”.

“Discussions will focus on the state of affairs in the Eastern Mediterranean in the light of Turkey’s continuing escalation of illegal activities, with particular emphasis on coordination in all areas to counter this escalation”.

The ministers will address the press after the meeting.

For reference: Turkey has on several occasions dispatched its seismic research vessel “Barbaros” to the Cyprus Exclusive Economic Zone following the Republic’s decision in 2011 to commence offshore exploration drilling.

Since May 2019, Turkey has successively dispatched two drilling vessels, Fatih and Yavuz, to carry out unauthorized hydrocarbon drilling work in the Eastern Mediterranean, precisely in those areas for which Cyprus has already issued licenses to two international energy companies.

The European Council reaffirmed its full solidarity with Cyprus. And in February 2020, it imposed restrictive measures against two individuals in connection with Turkey’s unauthorized drilling activities in the Eastern Mediterranean.