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Turkey's top diplomat, NATO chief talk East Med over phone

September 17, 2020 at 6:18 pm

Escorted by Navy warships, Turkey’s Oruc Reis seismic vessel is seen in the Eastern Mediterranean on 20 August 2020 [Turkish National Defense Ministry/Anadolu Agency]

The Turkish foreign minister on Thursday spoke with the head of NATO and his Canadian counterpart over the phone, according to diplomatic sources, Anadolu Agency reports.

Mevlut Cavusoglu, Jens Stoltenberg and Francois-Philippe Champagne discussed the ongoing dispute in the Eastern Mediterranean.

Also, Cavusoglu spoke with Tatarstan’s President Rustam Minnikhanov over the phone.

READ: Turkey called Egypt to sign maritime jurisdiction agreement, says foreign minister

Greece has disputed Turkey’s current energy exploration activities in the Eastern Mediterranean, trying to box in Turkish maritime territory based on small islands near the Turkish coast.

Turkey, the country with the longest coastline in the Mediterranean, has sent out drill ships to explore for energy on its continental shelf, citing that Ankara and the TRNC have rights in the region.

Dialogue about fairly sharing resources will be a win-win for all sides, say Turkish officials.