Special to WorldTribune.com

NICOSIA — The Turkish Navy last month held live fire exercises near
the natural gas fields of Israel and the Republic of Cyprus.

Diplomats said Turkish warships were conducting live-fire maneuvers in
the eastern Mediterranean in an apparent show of force toward Israel and
Cyprus. They said the Turkish ships were firing near the Israeli Leviathan
and Cyprian Bloc 12 gas fields.

“The message is that the Turks can attack whenever they feel like it,” a diplomat said.

The latest exercise took place in December. On Dec. 21, Turkish
Navy vessels, comprised largely of U.S.-origin platforms, fired into an area between Leviathan and Cyprian, both claimed by Ankara.

“We will continue to construct gas platforms and defend them,” Israeli
Infrastructure Minister Uzi Landau said.

“If Turkey does not change its gunboat diplomacy and stop playing the part of regional police officer, there will be consequences which, certainly, will not be good — either for the whole region or the Turkish people and first and foremost for Turkish Cypriots,” Greek Cypriot President Demetris
Christofias said.

Cypriot Foreign Minister Erato Kozakou-Marcoullis has termed Turkey the “neighborhood bully.” The foreign minister warned that Ankara was seeking to
de-legitimize its neighbors, starting with Israel.

“The tensions with Israel were just the beginning of a concerted effort
by Ankara to de-legitimize others in order to legitimize its actions,” Ms.
Kozakou-Marcoullis said.

The Turkish Navy exercises have also become a concern of the United
States. The diplomats said both Nicosia and Jerusalem urged
Washington to stop what they termed Turkish provocations.

  Ankara, Cyprian Bloc 12, Cypriot energy sites, Cyprus over gas fields, Demetris Christofias, Erato Kozakou-Marcoullis, Leviathan, Mediterranean, Nicosia, Turkish Navy cited for attempting to intimidate Israel, Uzi Landau