OIC denounces Cyprus-Israel EEZ deal

AT ITS 7th conference held in Indonesia, the Parliamentary Union of the Organisation for Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has passed a resolution denouncing the agreement between Cyprus and Israel delineating the two countries’ respective exclusive economic zones, reports said.

Citing Turkish Cypriot news sources, the Cyprus News Agency said the resolution was unveiled during a press conference held in the north by Hasan Bozer, Speaker of the breakaway regime’s ‘Parliament’.

According to Bozer, the resolution notes that Turkish Cypriots have equal rights with Greek Cypriots with regard to natural resources on the island.

In addition to condemning the Cyprus-Israel EEZ agreement, Bozer said, the resolution calls on all OIC members to develop relations with the “Turkish Cypriot state” in order to lift the isolation imposed on the Turkish Cypriots.

Bozer said also that, during the course of the OIC conference pamphlets advertising the north were distributed, adding that these were printed in Arabic, English and French.

Turkey has said Greek Cypriots cannot exploit any hydrocarbon reserves while the island remains divided. Following the signing of the Cyprus-Israel EEZ deal and the commencement of drilling in one of Cyprus’ offshore gas prospects, Ankara concluded an agreement with the breakaway regime delineating their respective continental shelves.

The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.