The Palestinian Ambassador to Turkey, Faed Mustafa, stated that Palestine was ready to make the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) agreement with Turkey.
Answering the questions asked by İsmet Özçelik from the journal Aydınlık, Mustafa assessed the developments in the Eastern Mediterranean.
Stating that the Palestinian state has the rights to oil and natural gas in the Eastern Mediterranean, the Ambassador noted that the first natural gas presence in the Eastern Mediterranean was discovered in the 1990s, and the first gas reserve was detected in 1996.
Mustafa continued: “This region is called the Marin reserve. We have not been able to utilize the natural gas here so far due to Israeli pressures. Israel did not allow us to work on the coastline, they prevented it.”
‘WE ARE READY FOR COOPERATION’
Faedda Mustafa gave the following answer to the question of “Turkey signed Exclusive Economic Zone Agreement with Libya. The issue is also discussed with other countries in the Eastern Mediterranean. Can an Exclusive Economic Zone Agreement be signed with Palestine?”:
“We attach great importance to our relations with Turkey. We work to increase the relations in all areas. We are open to all ideas for the development of these relations. This manner applies in the exclusive economic zone agreement with Turkey as well. We also have rights in the Mediterranean. Palestine also has a share in oil and natural gas in the Eastern Mediterranean. We are ready to deal with Turkey on gas. We are ready to cooperate with Turkey. We want to improve our relations in all areas. We are open to all. ”
From Palestine to the Caliphate: Implications of Israel’s annexation of the West Bank
EXPECTATIONS AGAINST THE ‘ANNEXATION’ PLAN
Ambassador Faed Mustafa answered the question regarding their expectations from other countries and international institutions in the face of the ‘annexation’ by the Israel-US partnership as follows:
“First of all, we have respect for Turkey’s siding with us by taking an attitude towards the US-Israeli annexation plan. All countries should take the same attitude with Turkey against injustice. The Arab and Islamic world should increase its pressure. Normalization steps with Israel should be stopped in the Arab and Islamic world. Normalization with Israel will reward Israel. This would be very wrong. If all relations with Israel, which occupies Palestinian territories, are cut, Israeli occupations are stopped. If this is managed, Israel will have to review what it is doing. ”
Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs: Talks on EZZ with Turkey did not occur.
Denying the reports that Palestine is ready to sign the Exclusive Economic Zone (EZZ) with Turkey, the Palestinian Foreign Ministry announced that they did not discuss this issue with Ankara.
According to The Independent Arabia, the Palestinian government denied the allegations after Palestinian Ambassador to Turkey Dr. Mustafa Faed’s stating that they were ready to sign Exclusive Economic Zone with Turkey.
Stating that they adopt the principle of impartiality in the conflicts in the Middle East and North Africa, the Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs declared that the ambassador’s statements were “detached from their context and loaded with different meanings than they mean”.
In the statements of “Palestine has a close relationship with the Mediterranean countries including Greece, Cyprus, and Turkey, and intends to conserve good relations and development”, it was emphasized that ‘There is no agreement currently being negotiated with any of these parties, their relations with neighboring countries are based on being good neighbors and international laws’.
After the Ministry of Foreign Affair, ambassador Mustafa stated that “Palestine does not intend to make any deal with neighboring countries including Turkey, Greece and, Cyprus in the near future.”
The statement of Aydınlık Journal
Aydınlık newspaper made the following statement regarding the issue after the Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs denied the news:
“In the news of the meeting held with the Palestinian Ambassador Faed Mustafa in our newspaper, the issue of cooperation with Palestine was raised in the Eastern Mediterranean. Ambassador Mustafa’s explanation that they are ready to cooperate with Turkey caused panic in Israel, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Greece, and the Greek Cypriot.
In the report from Sputnik regarding the basis of the report of the Independent Arabia, the Palestinian officials stated that “We did not discuss the Exclusive Economic Zone agreement with Turkey”. Reported in Aydınlık, Palestinian Ambassador Faed Mustafa has no such statement. The question of our Ankara Representative İsmet Özçelik, who met with Ambassador Mustafa, is clear and the records of the responses are in our archive.
Ömer Avadallah, the official of international organizations at the Palestinian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, who made a statement on the subject, stated that Palestine is currently fighting a war against Israel’s annexation plan and that they do not want to engage in any dispute that will take it away from this war.