Cyprus Issues Arrest Warrants for Turkey Drill Ship Crew

By Michele Kambas
Thursday, June 13, 2019

Cyprus has issued arrest warrants for the crew of a Turkish drill ship anchored close to its coast for allegedly infringing territory over which the island has rights to explore for oil and gas, a foreign ministry official said on Thursday.

"We can confirm that warrants were issued. It's a double digit number," the Cypriot official said, declining further comment.

Turkey said on June 10 that reports of the arrest warrants -- which had at that point not been confirmed by Nicosia -- "crossed the line".

The two countries have been at odds since the 1974 ethnic conflict that split the island between its Greek and Turkish Cypriot populations, and over recent natural gas finds in the seas surrounding Cyprus.

"No one should have any doubt that the necessary response will be given, in case of such an insolence," a Turkish foreign ministry spokesperson said then.

A Turkish drill ship, the Fatih, has been anchored west of Cyprus since last month, and another drill vessel, the Yavuz, is scheduled to be deployed east of the island soon.

Both areas are claimed by the Greek Cypriot government as its exclusive economic zone, where it has commercial rights to explore for hydrocarbons. Turkey maintains an area west of Cyprus is its own continental shelf. 

(Reuters, Reporting By Michele Kambas; Editing by Catherine Evans)

Categories: Legal Offshore Energy Drillships

Related Stories

OMV Exits Ghasha Gas Project off UAE with Lukoil Stake Sale

Valeura Concludes Eight-Well Drilling Campaign in Gulf of Thailand

Velesto’s Jack-Up Rig Up for Drilling Job Offshore Vietnam

ABS Greenlights SHI’s Multi-Purpose Deepwater LNG Floating Unit

Indonesia's Medco Starts Production at Natuna Sea Fields

MODEC, Sumitomo Partner Up for Delivery of Gato do Mato FPSO

Hanwha Drilling’s Tidal Action Drillship En Route to Petrobras’ Roncador Field

Woodside to Shed Some Trinidad and Tobago Assets for $206M

Argentina YPF to Shed Offshore Exploration Projects

Shell Hires Noble’s Drillship for Work in Southeast Asia

Current News

OMV Exits Ghasha Gas Project off UAE with Lukoil Stake Sale

China's Sinopec Laucnhes $690M Hydrogen Venture Capital Funds

CIP, ACEN Partner Up for First Large-Scale Offshore Wind Farm in Philippines

Valeura Concludes Eight-Well Drilling Campaign in Gulf of Thailand

Three Dead in Chevron's Angolan Oil Patform Fire

BW Opal FPSO Vessel set for Work off Australia

Keyfield Ventures into Indonesia’s Oil and Gas Market with New Partner

Fire Contained at Vietnamese Oil Platform Undergoing Decommissioning (Video)

Velesto’s Jack-Up Rig Set for Drilling Job off Indonesia

Petronas, Inpex Secure Oil and Gas Exploration Rights off Indonesia

Subscribe for AOG Digital E‑News

AOG Digital E-News is the subsea industry's largest circulation and most authoritative ENews Service, delivered to your Email three times per week

https://accounts.newwavemedia.com