PHOTO PHOTO: French President Emmanuel Macron answers journalists’ questions during a visit on the theme “learning summer camps” at Chambord Castle, France July 22, 2020. Ludovic Marin / Pool via REUTERS
PARIS (Reuters) – France will increase its military presence in the eastern Mediterranean, President Emmanuel Macron said on Wednesday, calling on Turkey to stop oil and gas exploration in disputed waters that have heightened tensions with Greece.
The French leader expressed concern about “unilateral” reconnaissance by Turkey in an interview with Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, Macron’s office said in a statement. It added that prospecting “would cease to enable a peaceful dialogue” between NATO neighbors.
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 “temporarily strengthen its military presence,” Macron said in a statement, “to monitor the situation in the region and mark its determination to uphold international law.”
Turkey and Greece are aware of competing claims on natural gas reserves, brought into sharp focus by EU member Cyprus’s attempt to investigate gas in the eastern Mediterranean over Turkey’s strong objections.
Macron last month called for EU sanctions against Turkey for what he described as “violations” of Greek and Cypriot sovereignty over its territorial waters. Relations between Paris and Ankara are also strained over the conflict in Libya.
Report by Laurence Frost; Edited by Chris Reese and Grant McCool
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