NO. 157 

WASHINGTON, DC — The American Hellenic Institute (AHI) decries the European Union’s announced imposition of limited sanctions on Turkish individuals involved in Turkey’s unauthorized energy exploration in the exclusive economic zone and continental shelf of Cyprus. More significant sanctions, such as trade tariffs or arms restrictions on Turkey, were not pursued.

 “The EU’s back-pedaling of the imposition of sanctions on Turkey’s financial institutions, as it signaled in October, is a profound disappointment,” AHI President Nick Larigakis said. “Turkey, a non-EU member country, is a force of instability in the Eastern Mediterranean and the greater region.  It has demonstrated aggressive and provocative behavior toward EU-member nations, Greece and Cyprus. In addition, Turkey has harassed research vessels of multinational oil firms in the exclusive economic zone of Cyprus.”

Larigakis added, “The EU’s announced limited sanctions do not go far enough. The selfish positions taken by several EU-member countries, especially Germany, Spain, and Italy, that called for watered-down sanctions on Turkey so as to not jeopardize their sales of defense articles to Turkey, is frankly disgraceful. By not going far enough to hold Turkey accountable, the EU has sacrificed its values and principles, and risks further aggression toward its own members, to the detriment of the bloc itself.”