Turkish Cypriot Prime Minister Ünal Üstel has slammed the Greek Cypriot Administration for writing to the U.N. against the memorandum of understanding on construction of a natural gas pipeline signed with Türkiye.
“You cannot prevent the development of the Turkish Cypriot people, the strengthening of our ties with our motherland Türkiye, or the steps we are taking for our energy future,” Üstel said in a written statement on Aug. 23.
“Let them complain as much as they want. Together with our motherland Türkiye, we will continue to protect the rights of our people, strengthen our country, and build our future together,” he added.
He said Greek Cyprus had signed various agreements for years while disregarding the will of the Turkish Cypriot people, and that its opposition to an agreement between Turkish Cyprus and Türkiye was therefore contradictory.
Türkiye and Turkish Cyprus signed the memorandum of understanding on July 10 to launch the natural gas pipeline project.
The planned pipeline will stretch 101 kilometers, with 97 kilometers running underwater and the remaining 4 kilometers on land.
It will connect Anamur in Türkiye’s Mersin province with Teknecik, east of Kyrenia, in Turkish Cyprus, and will be designed to allow gas to flow in both directions.
