Turkey Will Not Allow Transit of Israeli Gas to Europe

Turkey will not permit the transit of natural gas produced in Israel, linking the rejection to the present state of relations between the two nations.

Turkish Energy Minister Taner Yildiz said Turkey has turned down requests private firms to allow the transit of natural gas produced in Israel through Turkey to Europe.

Turkish-Israeli relations have been tense since the attack on a Gaza-bound flotilla on May 30, 2010 that killed nine Turkish nationals.

In very blunt terms, Yildiz stated: “Had not nine of our nationals been murdered, there could be major developments in the energy distribution in the Mediterranean Sea. [Then] we would not have rejected the demand by private firms,” he said on Friday.

The Minister's comments also reflect adverserial positions on the contested drilling by Cyprus in the Levant Basin of Mediterranean Sea.