Endy ZemenidesBut Turkey's flouting of international law in the eastern Mediterranean tracks back to its 1974 invasion of Cyprus, where thousands of Turkish soldiers are now garrisoned in the north. With Erdogan's recent strengthening of anti-access and area denial capabilities at its Cyprus facilities, Zemenides likened the island to "a permanent aircraft carrier in the eastern Mediterranean." "This is becoming a proxy war with Turkey and Qatar on one side and the Saudis, Emiratis, and the Russians backing Haftar." Zemenides argued that it is more important than ever that Washington "show Turkey it cannot act with impunity against American national security, intelligence, and economic interests." Second, the U.S. should work to bolster the Eastern Mediterranean Gas Forum.

Source: Libya Today December 21, 2019 20:26 UTC