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France will increase its military presence in the eastern Mediterranean, President Emmanuel Macron said on Wednesday, calling on Turkey to halt oil and gas exploration in disputed waters that has heightened tensions with Greece.
The French leader voiced concern over โunilateralโ exploration by Turkey in a call with Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, Macronโs office said in a statement. It added that prospecting should โcease in order to allow a peaceful dialogueโ between the neighbouring NATO members.
The standoff deepened this week with the arrival of Turkish seismic research vessel Oruc Reis in a disputed area of the Mediterranean, accompanied by warships.
France will โtemporarily reinforceโ its military presence, Macronโs statement said, to โmonitor the situation in the region and mark its determination to uphold international law.โ
Turkey and Greece are at loggerheads over competing claims to natural gas reserves, brought into sharp focus by the attempts of EU member Cyprus to explore for gas in the eastern Mediterranean over Turkeyโs strong objections.
Macron called last month for EU sanctions against Turkey for what he described as โviolationsโ of Greek and Cypriot sovereignty over their territorial waters. Relations between Paris and Ankara have also frayed over the conflict in Libya.
REUTERS
