'Cyprus deal could speed up Turkey energy project' - ARUTZ SHEVA 7 / ISRAEL NATIONAL NEWS

AFP, 05/03/17 12:10
A Cyprus peace deal would speed up Israel's project to provide gas to Turkey, the new Israeli ambassador to Ankara said Wednesday.

Eitan Naeh became Israel's first ambassador in Turkey in December when relations resumed in the summer after a six-year diplomatic rift.

"We think that the solution to the Cyprus problem can speed up the energy project," Naeh said, adding it was a "win-win" for everyone.

"A Cyprus solution will make life easier for all," he told reporters during a briefing in Ankara.

Naeh was referring to exporting gas from the Leviathan field off its coast, discovered in 2010 and set to begin production in 2019.

The best way for gas to be exported between Turkey and Israel would be a pipeline via the territorial waters of Cyprus.

Cyprus deal would boost Israel’s gas plans, ambassador says - CYPRUS MAIL

March 1, 2017
Elias Hazou

A peace deal on Cyprus would speed up Israel’s plans to export its gas to Turkey, the Israeli envoy to Ankara said on Wednesday. 

“We think that the solution to the Cyprus problem can speed up the energy project,” ambassador Eitan Naeh was quoted as saying, adding it was a “win-win” for all concerned.

TEKMOR Note: A Cyprus settlement is not possible on the current negotiation basis. EU-member Cyprus will carry on with its energy plans whereas the Turkish Cypriot minority, concentrated in the formerly majority Christian, now illegally occupied-colonised north, will become even more dependant on Turkey.

Security of Leviathan Gas field on NATO’s southern flank: an issue in Middle Eastern geopolitics - FOREIGN POLICY NEWS

February 20, 2017

Mehmet Bildik

NATO has been an institution that has expanded its sphere of influence exclusively toward east which NATO’s southern flank poses a complex threat that requires multi-dimensional strategies for territorial defense, cooperative security and crisis management. For the last 25 years of NATO’s history, the Alliance has constantly committed itself to provide security for Middle East and Mediterranean Energy fields.

Regarding counter terrorism and stabilization in the energy fields, the Warsaw Summit of 2016 has underlined importance of the Middle East. To this end, NATO’s Incirlik Airbase is crucial point for Middle East energy security and providing military and strategic capability for Turkey , United States and NATO’s Mediterranean partner Israel.