The European Union is preparing sanctions against Turkey for drilling off the shores of Cyprus, according to information from Brussels quoted by the German magazine Der Spiegel.

According to the magazine, the Council of Foreign Ministers of the EU next Monday is expected to give the green light to impose financial sanctions, but without making public any timetable or the list of targets that will be sanctioned.

According to the same sources, however, it is certain that the first measures will be imposed this year, as the possibility of immediate withdrawal of Ankara does not seem plausible.

Last July, the European Union, responding to the illegal Turkish drilling, cut funding available to Turkey while frozen the airspace negotiations and decided not to pursue high-level talks on the economy and trade.

At a later stage, individual EU member states are possible to propose sanctions, which should, however, be adopted centrally. “Diplomats believe it is a given that the government of Cyprus, an EU member state, will make such proposals quickly”, the magazine said in its online edition.