Jul 26, 2020
(Bloomberg Opinion) — The Israeli cabinet last week approved a pipeline deal to move gas offshore via Cyprus to Greece and Europe. The 1,900-kilometer (1,181 miles) link will connect gas fields in the Eastern Mediterranean basin to European markets. The $6 billion project, many years in the discussion, was boosted in January by an agreement signed in Athens between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his Greek and Cypriot counterparts.
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Israel is Diving Into the Troubled Eastern Mediterranean Back to video
The EastMed project puts Israel on a collision course with Turkey. Ankara has laid claim, reinforced with a maritime deal with Libya, to large parts of the Eastern Mediterranean, where it is exploring for gas–and conducting naval exercises. These moves are exacerbating tensions with Greece.
Israeli-Turkish relations are as low as they have been in years. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has made support for the Palestinians a centerpiece of his foreign policy, and the ruling AK Party uses every opportunity to slam Israel. In a recent televised speech, Erdogan said the conversion of Istanbul’s Hagia Sophia museum into a mosque a step to liberating Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem. For Israel, Turkey’s support for Hamas in Gaza as a constant provocation.
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Content retrieved from: https://financialpost.com/pmn/business-pmn/israel-is-diving-into-the-troubled-eastern-mediterranean?fbclid=IwAR1GS87uwZGTfW-V6xI3ue2EuxazFMnSqoP8HUHF7M7DD0CgBy7XdPZYWFw.