Turkish unpopular EU bid in troubled waters for threats versus Cyprus Gas search useful to EU Growth

While even Economy-experienced French Presidential palace Elysee's new Secretary General, Xavier Musca, speaking earlier to "EuroFora", clearly confirmed that possible findings of Oil-Gas a.o. Natural Resources in EU areas, (as f.ex. in EU Member Cyprus' territorial waters), can help to boost much needed EU's Growth,

Turkey's controversial and unpopular EU bid risks to face troubled waters in deep sea, judging by the stubborn and threatening reactions of Turkish Minister Bagis afer the unanimous EU, CoE, USA and Russia's calls to respect EU Member Country Cyprus' sovereign Right to peacefully explore and develop its Natural Resources inside its Exclusive Economic Zone on the base of several Bilateral Agreements with all other Neighbouring Countries as Egypt, Israel, Syria, Lebanon, etc. and according to the International Law of the Sea.

Particularly when the moves come just a few weeks before EU Parliament's full weekly Plenary Session in Strasbourg debates and votes on the 26th of October EU's Annual Budget for 2012, where several MEPs might be enclined to launch a call for Financial Sanctions against Ankara's more than 800 Millions € EU grants each year, a fortiori if Turkish threats are materialized...

Meanwhile, 2 exceptionally important EU and €uroZone Summits for Heads of State/Government has just been agreed for Sunday, 23th of October, in Brussels, i.e. at the eve of EU Parliament's forthcoming weekly Plenary Session in Strasbourg, (24-27/10/2011), which are due to discuss, among other Topical issues, also "External" aspects of the European Economy, including Energy and Minerals' supplies, as key elements for desired Growth :

I.e. precisely what seems to be at stake in Cyprus' a.o. exploration at its territorial deep waters, where specialized Texas US Company "Noble Energy" has just started drilling, reportedly with even better foundings on Gas which appear to go well beyond initial expectations,  shortly before a 2nd round of Licences' attribution is due to be opened during the following Weeks, as Cyprus' Commerce and Industry Minister, Mrs Praxula Antoniadou anounced today to German MPs, given that various, Norwegian, French, German, Russian, Israeli, Chinese, a.o. compagnies are reportedly interested.

     - "Turkey will always continue to react, as long as Greek Cypriots operate in the Eastern Mediterranean" Sea, reportedly threatened Bagis, inter alia, claiming that, in this sense, "the situation in the Mediterranean is at the hands of Greek Cypriots" (sic !), as he called the Internationally recognized Government of EU, CoE and UNO Member Cyprus.  

     + This was added also to other provocative statements by the Turkish Minister, who also claimed, f.ex. that "not even one Journalist isn't jailed in Turkey for its work", (sic !), slamed the EU Commission for even a benign Criticism on "Minorities"' Rights violations, and repeated Ankara's threats to not even "sit at the same table" with EU Member Cyprus, when it will take over the rotating Chairmanship of EU Council, in less than a years' time, (from the beginning of July 2012), etc.
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    - Bagis was reacting to EU Commission's Annual Reports on Turkey, published today in Brussels, which stress that "the (European) Union urges the Avoidance of Any kind of Threat, source of friction or action which could damage good neighbourly relations and the peaceful settlement of disputes", observing also the fact that "the Republic of Cyprus reported Violations of its Territorial Waters and Airspace by Turkey".

    - EU Commissioner on Enlargement and Neighborhood relations, Stefan Fuhle, reportedly reiterated that each EU Member State has a Sovereign Right to conclude Bilateral Agreements with any other Country, (f.ex. on Exclusive Economic Zones at the surrounding Mediterranean Sea), according to EU and International Law, while any threat to use Military Force, provoke Tension and/or behave in a way contrary to Peaceful Resolution of all dirputes is unacceptable by the EU, which reiterated again its call  for Turkey to normalize its relations vis a vis Cyprus.

    + Moreover, "Senior representatives of the Turkish government have stated that relations with the EU Presidency will be Frozen for six months as of 1 July 2012, in the absence of a comprehensive settlement of the Cyprus issue, when Cyprus takes over the Council presidency", EU Commission's 2011 Report critically notes.

     - EU Commission also denounced the fact that, inter alia, "despite repeated Calls by the (EU) Council (of Heads of State/Government)  and the Commission, Turkey still has Not complied with its Obligations outlined in the declaration by the European Community and its Member States of 21 September 2005, (comp. "EuroFora"s Co-Founder's FrontPage NewsReport from UNO Headquarters at New York one week before that), and in (EU) Council conclusions, including the December 2006 and December 2010 conclusions" :

    - Thus, from 2005 up to 2011, Turkey "has not (yet) met its Obligation to ensure full, non-discriminatory application of ..the (EU) Association Agreement and has Not removed all Obstacles to the Free Movement of goods, including Restrictions on direct Transport links with Cyprus", while, at the same time, "there was No progress on normalising bilateral relations with the Republic of Cyprus", and "Turkey has Not lifted its Veto of Cyprus' Membership of several international organisations, including the OECD and the Wassenaar Arrangement on export controls for conventional arms and dual-use goods", EU Commission's 2011 Report critically observes.

    + In addition, "the Threat of casus Belli in response to the possible extension of Greek territorial Waters made in the 1995 resolution of the Turkish Grand National Assembly still stands" today, in 2011, while "a substantial number of formal complaints about Violations of its territorial waters and airspace by Turkey, including flights over Greek islands", was denounced in 2011 by Greece, who is hindered, thus, even to pay its Debts with its own Energy Resources at the Aegean Sea, i.e. inside EU territory, according to the International Law of the Sea.

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+ CoE's PanEuropean Assembly : Declaration of + 60 MEPs
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    - Meanwhile, a large Group of MEPs from the Biggest Political Parties and several European a.o. Countries, published, at the conclusion of CoE's PanEuropean  Assembly, earlier these days in the CoE, a Topical written "Declaration", which has just started to be distributed in Strasbourg, on "Turkey's threats against the Sovereign Right of the Republic of Cyprus to Explore its Oil and Natural Gas Resources within its Exclusive Economic Zone"  :
    - MEPs' Declaration "Welcomes Statements by, inter alia, the USA, the Russian Federation, EU Member States, and the EU Commissioner for Enlargement (and Neighborhood), concerning the Inalienable, Sovereign Right of Cyprus to explore eventual Oil and Natural Gas deposits within its EEZ",

    and "strongly Condemn(s) Turkey's ""Bellicose" Threats against a Member State of the CoE and the EU", while also "Calling on the Turkish Prime Minister (Erdogan) to immediately Cease all Threats and actions provoking a Climate of Tension in the Region".

    +The PanEuropean Assembly MEPs' Declaration also "call" on Erdogan to "cease .. his Blackmail for Collapse of the on-going (UN-sponsored) Talks on the Cyprus' (political) problem, should the Republic of Cyprus proceed with its (EEZ's Natural Resources) Exploration".

     - "Faced with strong and Growing Threats by Turkey, against exercicing its Sovereign Right to Prospect for Oil and Natural gas within its Exclusive Economic ZOne (EEZ)", the "Republic of Cyprus", has, nevertheless, "this Right (which) stems from, and is in strict Compliance with International Law, and in particular the Convention on the Law of the Sea, which Turkey has Not signed to date", CoE's PanEuropean Assembly's MEPs explain.

    The New Text is signed by some 60 mainstream MEPs from the 3 Biggest Political Parties (ChristianDemocrats/EPP, Socialists and Liberals) but also from the Left, representing many important European Countries, such as Germany, France, the UK, Italy, Spain,  but also a Wider GeoPolitical spectrum extending even to the Netherlands, Austria, Switzerland, Belgium, Greece, Bulgaria, Slovenia, Czech Republic, Lithuania,  Croatia, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Moldova, Armenia (which wil chair the CoE from November 2012), Cyprus, Monaco, Andorra (which will chair the CoE from May 2012), etc.
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    Contrary to Turkey's threats, among the main other Countries, directly neighbouring with the expected findings in Cyprus' exclusive economic zone, the Egyptian Foreign Minister Mohamed Kamil Amr, reportedly confirmed that "Egypt will respect any commitment and agreement that it concluded", replying positively in a Journalist's question on the earlier agreement between Egypt and Cyprus on the demarcation of the two neighbouring and friendly countries' economic zones in the South Eastern Mediterranean Sea.

    + Moreover, Israel reportedly confirmed its clear stance to support peaceful Oil Gas Explorations in Cyprus as in its own territorial waters, while various other sources observed, that, after Turkey's threats and moves to sent Ship^s, including Military, throughout all the Eastern Mediterranean Sea, American and French Army Ships were reported heading towards Cyprus, where also German Army Ships are hosted since the 2006 Lebanon crisis for UNO Peacekeeping operations, as well as Israeli Helicopters, etc.

    According to some unverified yet informations, it's not excluded that Cyprus' President Christofias might visit, later this week, the drilling Platform of "Noble Energy" at the area known as square "12".
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    Risks to more or less "Freeze" EU's annual grants to Turkey, more than 800 Millions €, (obviously more and more Difficult to explain to Critical EU Citizens in a Period of Austerity and Budget Cuts, nor to other Neighbouring Countries, from Ukraine to Moroco, who complain for receiving Less EU funds), might come at a Dangerous point for Ankara's Economy, now that it started to face "Significant and Rising External Imbalances that pose a Threat to Macroeconomic Stability" :

Indeed,  "Trade and Current Account Deficits have been Rising", as long as "Credit growth, ..along with High commodity Prices, continues", while "Turkey's Price and Cost Export Competitiveness has slightly Worsened", and "Inflation has started to Rise, in large part due to Pressures stemming from Energy and Food Inputs, ...and Hikes in administrative Prices", making "Structural Reforms" necessary in an attempt to "Help Turkey to gain Credibility in the Markets", despite the fact that "Market Exit remains Difficult, and Bankruptcy proceedings are still relatively Cumbersome", as EU Commission today criticized :

I.e. in "Turkey .. there are increasing signs of OverHeating", provoking an obvious Threat to retun back to the 1998-2001 Past era of "Boost and Bust" successive Turkish Crisis...

Something particularly serious, when, in Turkey, also  "Corruption remains prevalent in many areas", "large-scale Undeclared Work and ...female employment rates are still matters of Concern", "the scope of the Labour Law remains Limited", and "enforcement of Health and Safety at work legislation Needs to be stepped up", while "the Risk of Poverty remains very High, especially for the Rural population and for Children", as EU Commissioner Fulher warned today.

Meanwhile, it's certainly bad for Turkish Banks to be "Black-listed" by "the Financial Action Task Force (FATF)" since "June 2011", particularly in the middle of the current Global Financial Crisis, because FATF "considers that Turkey has strategic Deficiencies in the area of anti-Money Laundering", in addition to the fact that "there has been No progress in payment systems and the level of overall alignment with the acquis remains Incomplete", while even Politically Motivated "Incidents of Prevention of Transactions (with) Banks established in Turkey have been reported", (f.ex. for Banks established in EU Member Cyprus, etc).

The recent "Black-listing" of Turkish Banks by FATF is due to be reviewed before the end of October 2011 in an Anti-Money Laundering Experts' meeting at the CoE in Strasbourg.