Statement by AKEL C.C. Spokesperson Stefanos Stefanou on the EastMed Gas Forum and US presence
Energy planning and initiatives must serve the primary strategic goal – our homeland’s liberation from the Turkish occupation and the reunification of our island and people
AKEL C.C. Press Office, 17th January 2020, Nicosia

The initiatives to set up an international organization of the EastMed Gas Forum with the participation of seven countries in our region can and must become a step towards forging regional cooperation.
We reiterate that these cooperations are correctly open to all the states in the region, including Turkey, provided that it respects its neighbors and their sovereign rights, international law and, in particular, the law of the sea.

We note, of course, that the US presence as an observer in a formation of cooperation of Eastern Mediterranean countries obviously doesn’t only express an interest for initiatives on energy, but also a presence and involvement in the promotion of their geopolitical interests in the region – interests that have been synonymous with destabilization and interventions over time.

AKEL stresses that all our energy planning and initiatives must serve the primary strategic goal that unites us all. Namely, our homeland’s liberation from the Turkish occupation and the reunification of our island and people. Natural wealth must operate as a tool and lever for a solution of the Cyprus problem based on principles, for security and peace in our country and throughout the whole region.