Letter from Brussels A midsummer nightmare in the East Mediterranean

摘要

The Eastern Mediterranean has always been, and is, one of the world's most turbulent areas. Long-lasting conflicts, such the Cyprus dispute and clashes with the State of Israel, mixed with the Arab Springs, the US withdrawal from the area and the Syrian and Libyan civil wars, exposed the region to permanent instability. An additional - and potentially explosive - bone of contention among regional actors is linked to the discovery, in 2009, of large gas fields in territorial water of Cyprus, Greece, Israel, Egypt and Lebanon. The regional countries' appetite for research of potential new reservoirs in the area, coupled with a lack of clarity on maritime boundaries under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and following treaties, paved the way for a risky game in the theatre.