Ankara uses water pipeline to drown out opposition in “Turkish Cyprus”

A family takes a stroll next to a reservoir in Myrtoy that will receive fresh water from Turkey via a water pipeline project linking Turkey to northern Cyprus Oct 17 2015. The 106-kilometre (66-mile) pipeline will transport some 75 million cubic metres (2.6 billion cubic feet) of water annually to northern Cyprus, a breakaway Turkish Cypriot state recognized only by Ankara. Cyprus suffers from frequent droughts. REUTERS/Yiannis Kourtoglou - RTS4V5V

A family takes a stroll next to a reservoir in Myrtoy that will receive fresh water from Turkey via a water pipeline project linking Turkey to northern Cyprus Oct 17 2015. The 106-kilometre (66-mile) pipeline will transport some 75 million cubic metres (2.6 billion cubic feet) of water annually to northern Cyprus, a breakaway Turkish Cypriot state recognized only by Ankara. Cyprus suffers from frequent droughts. REUTERS/Yiannis Kourtoglou - RTS4V5V

With much fanfare last October, Turkey inaugurated Water of Peace, a 50-mile undersea pipeline carrying water from Turkey to the drought-stricken Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC). It was a sign of Ankara’s unwavering support for the enclave, which only Turkey recognizes and supports. In January, Al-Monitor reported that Turkey’s Justice and Development Party (AKP) government was pressuring the TRNC to give the water distribution and sales rights to a private monopoly and warned that this could lead to a political crisis in the TRNC.

Read more: http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2016/04/turkey-cyprus-water-fiat-threatens-peace-talks.html#ixzz46MLBCoAN

Authors

Yiannis-visibility hidden

Top