Greece, Cyprus, Italy, France to hold military exercises
Discovery of major gas deposits has triggered tensions
26 August, 16:36Tensions ratched up another notch when Turkey sent the Oruc Reis research vessel accompanied by warships to disputed waters on August 10. "Cyprus, Greece, France and Italy have agreed to deploy a joint presence in the eastern Mediterranean as part of the quadripartite cooperation initiative," the defence ministry said in a statement. "The tensions and instability in the eastern Mediterranean have heightened disputes on issues concerning maritime space." (ANSA-AFP).