Turkish Navy Prevents Malta-Flagged Boat From Drilling in Mediterranean, Defence Ministry Says

ANKARA (Sputnik) - The Turkish navy has prevented Malta-flagged vessel Nautical Geo from fulfilling the request of Cyprus and conducting exploration for hydrocarbon deposits in Eastern Mediterranean, which Ankara considers as its territorial waters, the Turkish Ministry of National Defence said on 4 October.

"Despite all warnings from Turkey, on 3 October, the Malta-flagged Nautical Geo vessel tried to enter the Turkish territorial waters. It was warned about the illegality of these actions by a Turkish research vessel located in the same area. After the Nautical Geo vessel did not respond to the warning and continued its attempt to violate the borders of the Turkish shelf, it was expelled by the Turkish naval forces," the ministry said.

In late September, the Turkish foreign ministry said that a Malta-flagged boat tried to access what Turkey considers its territorial waters, as well as territorial waters of the self-proclaimed Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, in the Eastern Mediterranean.