Greece wants sea resources exploitation deal with Malta, Cyprus

The European Commission is working on a proposal by Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras for joint efforts by Greece, Malta and Cyprus on the exploitation of sea resources, particularly oil and gas. European Maritime Affairs Commissioner Maria Damanaki, who happens to be Greek, told Times of Malta that Brussels favoured the idea and was working on a proposal to be published soon. Malta also confirmed its interest and is planning to hold meetings with the Greek government. The idea of jointly exploiting the sea resources in the Mediterranean and the setting up and coordination of exclusive economic zones (EEZs) between the three countries was first floated a few weeks ago by Mr Samaras who said that energy reserves in the region were part of Europe’s assets and must be exploited. “We must rally together for something that unites us and we must raise our head for something that gives us prospects,” he told a meeting of the Euro-Med Cooperation and Investments Mechanism in Athens. Results could be better achieved if the three countries worked together on similar objectives, he said. “The declaration of an exclusive economic zone is a matter of individual member states but the EU can...