Ankara’s drilling piques Athens’ interest

Athens is closely observing Ankara's plans to enhance its fleet for hydrocarbon exploration and extraction. 

Ankara has made the Black Sea the focus of its efforts to explore for gas and oil. The Black Sea is where almost all of its floating drilling vessels are currently active, the latest being the seventh-generation Abdulhamid Han.

According to Turkey's Energy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar, Ankara has prioritized the Black Sea, followed by the Eastern Mediterranean and ultimately the Aegean. This designation has not gone unnoticed by Athens, which is concerned that if Greek-Turkish relations deteriorate further, Turkey may resume exploration in the Eastern Mediterranean. In any case, the recent tension south of Kasos (which was unrelated to operations on the continental shelf) reminded Ankara that the situation in the Eastern Mediterranean strikes some sensitive...