Barbaros waiting further instructions

The Turkish seismic vessel Barbaros will remain anchored in Famagusta awaiting instructions on whether to resume exploration in Cyprus’ Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) or return to Turkey, which will depend on the UN special envoy’s Espen Barth Eide’s efforts to bring the Greek Cypriot side back to the negotiating table, the Cyprus News Agency reported on Saturday.
Citing sources in Turkey, the CNA refuted reports in Turkish Cypriot press that the Barbaros would be dispatched for further research in the Cypriot EEZ on January 5, saying no decision has been made yet on any future activity by the Barbaros, as the Turkish government has allowed Eide some time at his request to undertake efforts to resolve the crisis.
The same sources, according to the CNA, said that the marching orders to be issued to the Barbaros would depend on the Greek Cypriot side’s actions – meaning whether it would start new drilling – and noted that if Eide’s efforts bore fruit the vessel would return to Turkey, otherwise a new NavTex (navigational telex) for exploration in Cyprus’ EEZ would be issued by Ankara.

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.