Turkey Threatens the European Union

Turkey will freeze relations with the European Union if Cyprus assumes the presidency of the group of nations, Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Besir Atalay said, the official Turkish news agency reported Sunday.

Anadolu did not elaborate on what that would mean in practice.

Atalay was on a visit to the self-declared Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, which is not recognized internationally.

Turkish troops invaded Cyprus in 1974 in response to a coup d'etat there, engineered by by Greece, which was run by a military dictatorship at the time.

The island remains divided despite years of efforts to resolve the deadlock. The southern part of the island joined the European Union on its own after unity efforts failed.

Cyprus is scheduled to take over the rotating six-month leadership of the EU in the second half of 2012, on a schedule that was announced in 2007.

Turkey has spent years negotiating to join the European Union.

CNN

UN urges calm over Cyprus-Turkey gas row

The UN stepped into calm tempers on Friday after Turkey threatened divided Cyprus to put off drilling for natural gas or it will press ahead with exploration plans off the island’s Turkish-held north.

“It should be understood that natural resources, if they are discovered, would be for the benefit of all Cypriots — Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots — under the framework of a federal united Cyprus,” said UN chief of mission Lisa Buttenheim after officiating at peace talks between Cypriot President Demetris Christofias and Turkish Cypriot leader Dervis Eroglu.

“The United Nations would appeal to all involved to resolve this matter in a peaceful manner and look beyond the issues to the potential benefits that a united Cyprus can bring,” she told reporters.

The UN is worried that the energy row — which also involves Greece and Israel — could derail Cyprus peace talks that are faltering after three years of painstaking negotiations.

Turkey threatened on Thursday to sign a continental shelf delimitation agreement with northern Cyprus if the internationally recognised Greek Cypriot government moves ahead with gas exploration plans, the foreign ministry said.

Turkey's Behavior Backfires

"The Arabs distinguish between a Turkey that stands up to Israel and engages with them and a Turkey that wants to dominate the entire region," Jenkins said.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/09/08/us-turkey-israel-gamble-idUSTRE7871WZ20110908