Cyprus

The United States said Wednesday it plans to conduct military training with Cyprus for the first time, defying NATO ally Turkey, which warned of destabilization. The US Congress last year ended a decades-long arms embargo on the island, whose northern third is occupied by Turkey. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said the State Department for the first time will fund military training for the Republic of Cyprus as part of “our expanding security relationship.”

[…] In an interview with the Guardian, Mustafa Akinci said the differences between the two sides were growing more entrenched every year, diminishing the prospect of reunification. “We need to hurry up. After all these years we have come to a crossroads, a decisive moment,” he said.

The UN Secretary-General held “focused and frank” informal talks with the leaders of the Greek and Turkish Cypriot communities on Monday in order to “take stock of efforts” to finally reach a settlement over the divided Mediterranean island.

Leaders of the Greek and Turkish parts of the divided island of Cyprus have agreed to meet with the UN Secretary-General, António Guterres, in order to “plan the way forward”, and improve the daily lives of all Cypriots, a statement from the UN Mission in Cyprus, declared on Friday.

A Turkish ship planning to drill for oil and gas close to Cyprus dropped anchor off the island on Monday, triggering a strong protest from Nicosia and a rebuke from the European Union. Last month, EU leaders warned Turkey to end its gas drilling in waters around the island or face action from the bloc, after Greece and Cyprus pressed other EU states to speak out.

The EU has threatened to impose sanctions on Turkey if it continues "illegal drilling" in waters near Cyprus in the eastern Mediterranean. … The European Council - the EU government leaders - called on Turkey to "show restraint, respect the sovereign rights of Cyprus and refrain from any such actions".

The EU and US have urged Turkey to stop drilling for gas in Cyprus' maritime zone - but Ankara has told its allies it would do so anyway.