Icon: enlarge
The Turkish research vessel "Oruc Reis" (archive)
Photo: Murad Sezer / REUTERS
According to official information, the Turkish gas research vessel "Oruc Reis" has landed on its controversial position in the eastern Mediterranean.
"The tests started yesterday and today we are receiving the first seismic evaluations," said Turkish energy minister Fatih Dönmez, according to the state news agency Anadolu on Wednesday.
Turkey had announced that it would be sending the "Oruc Reis" into controversial waters south of the Greek island of Kastelorizo from Monday in order to search for natural gas there by October 20.
The decision reignited the gas dispute with Greece.
Greece calls exploration "serious escalation"
The Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis then announced that he would call for sanctions against Turkey at the EU summit in Brussels on Thursday and Friday.
This was a consequence of the renewed provocations on the part of Ankara, said government spokesman Stelios Petsas on the Greek television channel Skai.
The renewed dispatch of the Turkish research ship is "a serious escalation".
The EU has repeatedly threatened Turkey with sanctions if the "Oruc Reis" explorations continue in the area.
Ankara has declared - against international law of the sea - that the Greek islands of Crete, Rhodes and smaller islets are not entitled to exclusive economic zones (EEZ) and that the sea areas outside the six-mile zone south of these islands are Turkish sea areas.
Foreign Minister Maas "extremely horrified"
Athens accuses Turkey of illegally searching for natural gas in the waters of Greece's Exclusive Economic Zone.
There is a similar conflict over the island of Cyprus, off whose coast rich natural gas reserves have already been discovered.
The dispute had escalated in August, but had relaxed a little in the meantime.
During visits to the Republic of Cyprus and Greece on Tuesday, Federal Foreign Minister Heiko Maas urged Turkey to refrain from provocations and was "extremely horrified" by the dispatch of the "Oruc Reis".
Greece and Turkey had agreed exploratory talks in the dispute through Berlin.
Icon: The mirror
mfh / dpa
