Does the Cyprus EEZ follow, the Model of the Aegean Sea?
the problem. Thus, legal and geopolitical aspects of the problem are of eminent importance as they have their own impact on the solution. The gas deposits lying in the EEZ of Cyprus constitute an issue, which comprises of both geopolitical and legal aspects. Therefore, this article deals with geopolitical and legal issues of the Cyprus gas resources and the risk, which might result if the solution to the Cyprus conflict will be not based on a concrete legal and geopolitical framework, being acceptable by all. The question is whether a scenario, which is relevant to the dispute of the Aegean Sea, might be realized and furthermore whether Turkey, and under what conditions, can annex Cyprus regardless of the solution to the problem. This analysis is to be seen through the lens of the Turkish revisionist policy, which is still alive and affects the political developments in a regional level. In this regard, we should underline that the Turkish revisionist policy traces back to 1973 once the Turkish government questioned the sovereign rights of Greece in the Aegean Sea and the air space1 . In an effort to put the Aegean dispute in order we could note the following issues that it consists of: •
Delineation of territorial waters. This is an issue, which is inherent in national sovereignty (Republic of Turkey, Minister of Foreign Affairs, 2016).
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Delineation of Exclusive Economic Zones and continental shelf (Republic of Turkey, Minister of Foreign Affairs, 2016). These issues are pertinent to gas and oil resources lying in the Aegean Sea.
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Delineation of national airspace and delineation of Flight Information Regions (FIR) (Republic of Turkey, Minister of Foreign Affairs, 2016). These two issues are relevant to the control of military flights, security issues and the geostrategic domination on the region (Republic of Turkey, Minister of Foreign Affairs, 2016).
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Demilitarization of Greek islands (Inan, 1998, Republic of Turkey, Minister of Foreign Affairs, 2016). This topic refers to security issues and balance of power. Turkey alleges that the military forces stationed in the islands constitute a permeant threat on Turkish coasts. On the other hand, the Greek islands will be a prey to the Turkish army if a status of demilitarization is imposed.
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On November 1, 1973 the Turkish government published in the official Turkish Government Gazette a map upon which areas of the Aegean Sea had been designated as part of the Turkish sovereignty and a license had been issued to the Turkish Petroleum Company for research activities. The problem was raised because the Turkish map had included areas, which are considered as legally belonging to Greece. This was the first sign about the Turkish revisionist policy in the Aegean Sea, which is, among others, relevant to the oil and gas resources, which might exist in this certain region.
YIANNOS CHARALAMBIDES