The US Ambassador to Cyprus, Kathleen Doherty said the US was closely following the developments in Cyprus regarding the country’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and its energy exploration. Exiting the Presidential Mansion where she met with Nicos Anastasiades, the top US diplomat expressed the hope that the issue would soon be resolved and talks on the Cypriot issue would resume.
“We had a very good discussion about what is happening, including the issue of hydrocarbons, and I have conveyed to the President that the United States strongly believes that the Republic of Cyprus has the right to explore and exploit resources in its EEZ and I reiterated that we are interested in the issues related to the Eastern Mediterranean”, said the US Ambassador. She added that the US Foreign Affairs Minister Rex Tillerson had raised the issue with the Turks during his visit to Ankara last week

Meanwhile, as Italian news agency Ansa reports, sources from the Italian Foreign Ministry said today that Italy confirmed its willingness to seek every possible diplomatic solution in international law on an issue that does not concern bilateral relations between Italy and Turkey but relations and balances that are also economic between the Republic of Cyprus and the northern part of the island.

The same source added that a potentially negative outcome of the ongoing efforts to determine agreed processes in exploring the region might jeopardise possible growth and benefits for the entire region.