The north’s ‘foreign ministry’ on Tuesday said the agreements signed by the Republic of Cyprus and Egypt concerning the exploitation of natural gas resources under the seabed in the eastern Mediterranean “risk bringing not only our island but also our region to the brink of conflict”.

“The Greek Cypriot leadership is continuing to accelerate its policy of usurping the Turkish Cypriots’ rights by creating faits accomplis, as has been ongoing since 1963,” it said.

It added that the agreements were signed “at the expense of ignoring the Turkish Cypriot people’s rights”, adding that the Turkish Cypriots “were not a party to and did not approve” the agreements, and that they thus “have no effect and are invalid”.

It called on President Nikos Christodoulides to stop taking such steps, while also warning the international community against signing agreements with the Republic.

“The fact that some countries make agreements with the Greek Cypriot side in various areas, essentially because their own national interests require it, causes the Greek Cypriot leadership to become intoxicated by their power and therefore become disconnected from reality,” it said.

It added, “the Greek Cypriot leadership continues to lie that it wants to reach an agreement on the island with the support it receives from the international community.

“The Greek Cypriot leadership’s real aim is not to reach a permanent and sustainable agreement on the island, but only to ensure the continuation of the status quo. In this way, the Greek Cypriot side aims to continue the unjust isolation of the Turkish Cypriot people.”

It went on to say the Greek Cypriot side “does not want to establish a partnership with the Turkish Cypriot people on any issue”, and thus called on the international community “to see the reality in Cyprus – in other words, to accept the existence of two states”.

Two agreements were signed on Monday, the first being a memorandum of understanding signed by both Cyprus and Egypt, as well as American multinational corporation Chevron, Israeli energy company NewMed Energy, and the BG Group, which is owned by Royal Dutch Shell, concerning the Aphrodite deposit in Block 12 of Cyprus’ Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).

The agreement establishes the framework for the effective commercialisation of the natural gas which will come from the field.

The second was a ‘host government agreement’, signed by Cyprus, Egypt and the consortium comprising French multinational corporation Total and Italian energy company Eni over Block 6 of Cyprus’ EEZ.

This agreement sets Egypt as the “host government” for Block 6 and the Kronos, Zeus and Kalypso gas fields which are present under its seabed, meaning that the gas extracted will be sent to the Segas liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal in the Egyptian port city of Damietta for liquefaction.

Given the proximity of the Kronos reservoir and Block 6 to Egypt’s ‘Zohr’ gas field, which Eni also operates, Eni will be able to use its own infrastructure to take the Cypriot natural gas to Damietta.