UN Special Envoy for Cyprus Espen Barth Eide is these days trying to unblock the peace process on the Mediterranean island, after the Greek Cypriot President of Cyprus, Nicos Anastasiades, suspended on Tuesday his participation in the negotiating table. A dispute with Turkey over underwater gas drilling is the reason for Anastasiades's move.

Turkey sent last Friday a warship to south Cyprus waters in order to conduct seismic surveys. Thosee waters are internationally recognized as being part of the Cypriot Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), but Turkey does not recognize it. Ankara says any exploratory drilling in EEZ waters should only be conducted after an agreement between the Greek Cypriot government of Cyprus and the Turkish Cypriot government of North Cyprus is reached.

EEZ are areas of exclusive competence of states for the exploitation of natural resources. For this reason, the government of Cyprus has given exploratory drilling licenses to several companies. Among them, Italian ENI and South Korean KOGAS have been licensed in Cyprus' EEZ block 9. This block is bordered by Israeli waters, where several gas fields have been discovered. ENI, KOGAS and the Cypriot government hope to find more of them in block 9.

Eide is now in Cyprus, where he is holding meetings with Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot politicians and diplomats. Eide's spokesman did not rule out that the UN envoy could meet Anastasiades and North Cyprus President Dervis Eroglu in order to redirect the conflict.

Since 2008, talks about the future of the island are being conducted within a framework agreement by which Cyprus should became a federal country made up of two states: a Greek Cypriot state and a Turkish Cypriot state. Up till now, talks have failed to define how this solution should be shaped.