US informs Israel it will not support EastMed gas pipeline

Washington has officially informed Israel that it will no longer support the proposed EastMed natural-gas pipeline, Israeli media reported on Tuesday, pointing that the US also informed Greece and Greek Cyprus of its decision.

The Jerusalem Post reported that an official from the Israeli Foreign Ministry confirmed the decision on Tuesday, but said that the had Ministry refused to comment on the matter.

Former US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and former US Energy Secretary Dan Brouillette expressed US support for the pipeline when they were in office.

However, Washington informed Athens it was reversing course from the Trump administration in a “non-paper” communication this month.

READ: US abandons plans for EastMed pipeline due to ‘destabilising’ regional tensions

Earlier this month, the US administration of President Joe Biden told Greece that it stopped its support for the EastMed Pipeline.

Turkish analysts considered this a US blow to the Greek activities in the East Mediterranean that violates Turkish sovereignty.

“The American side expressed to the Greek side reservations as to the rationale of the EastMed pipeline, [and] raised issues of its economic viability and environmental [issues],” a Greek government source told Reuters.

“The Greek side highlighted that this project has been declared a ‘special project’ by the European Union, and any decision on its viability will logically have an economic impact,” the official said.

Greece, Cyprus, and Israel have approved an agreement for the EastMed pipeline, which has been in the planning for several years.

Ankara has repeatedly said that any plans in the eastern Mediterranean that exclude it were bound to fail and that it would defend its rights in the region.

Turkey has also opposed the EastMed project, Reuters reported, saying the plan could not work without Turkey’s approval.