SHOCK - UK Minister Says UK Should Have Rights To Cyprus' Natural Resources

(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The UK government has reserved the right to claim up to 12 nautical miles of territorial sea on behalf of the two British military bases in Cyprus, affirmed the Minister of State for Europe David Lidington. He also clarified that Britain should have no rights over the natural resources off the coast of the bases.

Responding to a Conservative MP's written question on what assessment has been made by the Foreign Office on whether the UK's bases in Cyprus have a territorial water and a claim to a continental shelf, Mr Lidington referred to the Annex A of the 1960 treaty concerning the establishment of the Republic of Cyprus, which defines the adjacent territorial sea boundaries between the two base areas and Cyprus.

"Presently, both sovereign base areas claim a territorial sea out to three nautical miles but we have reserved our rights to claim up to 12 nautical miles on their behalf, as provided for under the UN convention on the law of the sea", reads the minister's statement. His response also covered the second leg of the question regarding any intention by the UK government to make a submission to the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS).

CNA