ANKARA
Greek Ambassador to Ankara Kyriakos Loukakis has been summoned by the Turkish Foreign Ministry following the suspension of peace talks over Cyprus, a diplomatic source said Wednesday.
According to the diplomatic source, Loukakis met with Deputy Undersecretary Ahmet Muhtar Gun Wednesday. During the meeting, Greece was urged to encourage the Greek Cypriot administration to put in more efforts into the suspended peace talks, the source said.
The Greek Cypriot administration suspended the talks over the divided island on October 7 after Turkey sent a warship to monitor an oil and gas exploration mission off the coast of Cyprus.
Turkey and the Turkish Cypriot government have strongly opposed to any unilateral move by the Greek Cypriot administration to explore hydrocarbon resources around the island, saying that the island's natural resources should be exploited in a fair manner under a united Cyprus.
The Greek ambassador was told that "as one of the warrantor countries, Greece is expected to make an effort for the Greek Cypriot administration and encourage the continuation of peace talks," the source added.
Greek Cypriot leader Nicos Anastasiades had abandoned the talks with the Turkish Cypriot leadership Tuesday following reports that a Turkish corvette had been sent to monitor the Greek-Cypriot exploration.
Dervis Eroglu, the president of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, was now expected to meet with Anastasiades to move to a new phase of negotiations on October 9.
Meanwhile, a British Foreign Office spokesperson said that it regretted the recent incidents. It called on all parties to avoid "inflammatory" actions or statements.
The spokesperson said it recognized the Greek Cypriot administration's sovereign rights to exploit mineral reserves in its Exclusive Economic Zone.
"It remains our position that such resources should be exploited for the benefit of all the communities in Cyprus. This incident underlines the importance of a comprehensive settlement. We therefore hope that settlement talks can progress successfully this week. There is an opportunity for Turkey to continue to demonstrate the positive role that it can play in supporting the prospects for a settlement," the spokesperson added.
Turkish EU Minister Volkan Bozkir on Wednesday called on the U.S. and the European Union to make efforts to convince the Greek Cypriot administration to reverse its decision of halting the settlement negotiations.
The island of Cyprus has remained divided into Greek and Turkish parts since a Greek-Cypriot coup was followed by a Turkish peace mission to aid Turkish Cypriots in the north in 1974.
The Greek Cypriot administration is a member of the EU. It is internationally recognized except by Turkey, which remains the only country that recognizes the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.
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